The Practice of Copying in the Making of Noh Masks

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Noh Mask: Traditionally Identified as Yamanba
Attributed to Shakuzuru, Passed down by the Umewaka Family, Nanbokuchō period, 14th century (Important Cultural Property)

Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room 14
September 3, 2024 (Tue) - October 20, 2024 (Sun)

In noh plays, masks define the characters and set the mood on stage. During the 1600s, the samurai adopted noh as their official performing art and began staging noh plays during rituals and ceremonies. This custom increased the demand for new masks.

To meet this demand, artisans began creating copies of famous masks from previous eras. These copies closely imitated the details of the originals, including flaking pigments, other damages, and chisel marks on the inside surface. A new mask could be a copy of the original or a copy of another copy. This exhibition explores noh mask making focusing on the tradition and significance of copying.

List of Exhibits

Major works in this exhibition

* Works listed below are in the TNM Collection unless otherwise indicated.

Noh Mask: Traditionally Identified as Yamanba, Attributed to Shakuzuru, Passed down by the Umewaka Family, Nanbokuchō period, 14th century (Important Cultural Property)

Noh Mask: Shakumi, With the carved inscription "Original", Passed down by the Konparu School, Nara, Muromachi period, 15th–16th century (Important Cultural Property)

Noh Mask: Ko'omote, With the branded mark Tenkaichi Kawachi, Passed down by the Konparu School, Nara, Edo period, 17th century (Important Cultural Property)

Noh Mask: Great God (Ōtenjin) , Passed down by the Konparu School, Nara, Muromachi period, 15th century (Important Cultural Property)

Pamphlet