Mask

Currently not on view

Mask

c. 1560

Monogrammist IHS (Italian, active 1560–1572) Formerly attributed to René Boyvin (French, c. 1525–c. 1580) Copy after an engraving of 1555 by Frans Huys (Flemish, 1522–1562) After a design by Cornelis Floris (Dutch, 1514–1575)

The sixteenth-century interest in decorative masks has its roots in antique examples. In classical antiquity, masks were used in the theater as well as in the ornamentation of architecture. In the Renaissance, masks like this one were applied to both architecture and decoration, where they often appeared as grimacing faces composed of half-animal and half-vegetable features.

Currently not on view

Object Details

Titles:

Mask

Date:

c. 1560

Artists:

Monogrammist IHS (Italian, active 1560–1572) Formerly attributed to René Boyvin (French, c. 1525–c. 1580) Copy after an engraving of 1555 by Frans Huys (Flemish, 1522–1562) After a design by Cornelis Floris (Dutch, 1514–1575)

Medium:

Engraving

Dimensions:

Image: 6 1/8 x 5 3/4 inches (15.6 x 14.6 cm)

Classification:

Prints

Credit Line:

The Charles M. Lea Collection, 1928

Accession Number:

1928-42-4768

Geography:

Made in Italy, Europe

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Currently not on view