Bugaku mask of Korobase
From Japan
Edo period,
17th century AD
Used in a Bugaku dance performance
Bugaku dances were performed to Gagaku court music derived from sources in India, China, Korea and elsewhere in South-east Asia. The dances include episodes of both war and peace, certain dances performed by women or children, and more exotic pieces using animal and bird masks.
This beaked mask is
used in a Bugaku performance involving four dancers wearing green
costumes and identical masks. They carry gold-coloured bells in
their bills, the sound of which represents the cries of the giant
birds they imitate. The Korobase mask probably derives from the
more awesome Karura of
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Theatre and visual arts in 18th and 19th century Japan, £20.00