Japanese masks collection

It is known that the oldest masks used in Japan were for gigaku, a form of dance long gone now, which was performed around the 7th century. Today, the best known Japanese masks are those used for Noh theater and for the Shinto Kagura dances. While the Noh masks are all standardized, each having its own name and specifications, the Kagura masks can vary a lot, original versions being also accepted.

But mask in Japan are also used for decoration, like this collection photographed in the Toy Museum from Kurashiki, Okayama. Among them, here are some of the best known: two of the 7 gods of luck, Fukurokuju (the 7th on the top row) and Ebisu (9th and 10th on the top row), kitsune (foxes), tengu (the ones with big, red nose), oni (the 3th on the 5th row from the top) and Hyottoko (the 6th on the bottom row).