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Mummy Bundle "Mask"
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
The Paracas people buried their dead in pear-shaped mummy bundles, created by carefully wrapping the seated human body in layers of garments and other textiles. Sometimes a painted cloth was placed on the outer layer at the top of the bundle, as though it served as the bundle’s face, head, or “mask.” Some cloths were painted with masklike faces, although others—such as this example—feature complete figures, which may be mythological beings with supernatural appendages.
Cleveland Museum of Art’s own descriptionCredit lineMummy Bundle "Mask", 200–1 BCE. Peru, South Coast, Ica Valley, Ocucaje site, Paracas style. Cotton: plain warp-faced cloth, painted; overall: 48.3 x 18.3 cm (19 x 7 3/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Norweb Collection, 1940.520
