Teotihuacan Masks
Today, in celebration of Día de Los Muertos, we are looking at stone masks from Teotihuacan, dating to around 200 A.D. to 650 A.D! Stone masks are possibly the best well-known representation of Teotihuacan's sculptures and a larger emblem of Mesoamerican history. These two masks are carved from single jadeite pieces with inlaid onyx (the Aztec tecali) and shell eyes; the teeth are made from bone, found on the left mask (better seen in the detail photo). There is still much to understand about Teotihuacan culture and these masks. Nevertheless, scholars can try to decipher their use and significance through visual analysis and archaeological contexts. Many of these masks were found in and around the ancient city of Teotihuacan (200-700 A.D.), which lies just northeast of modern-day Mexico City. While they may not be directly connected to modern celebrations of Día de Muertos, we can gain knowledge of indigenous Mexican ancestral traditions of mortuary practices.
Teotihuacan is a city and culture of many mysteries. We do not know what language they spoke or what was the name of their culture, the name, "Teotihuacan," was actually given to them by the Aztecs, who rose around the 13th century A.D., a few hundred years after Teotihuacan's mysterious collapse. The name means "the city where the gods were made," in fact, this was a unique pilgrimage site for the Aztecs, including the ruler Motecuhzoma II. While people came to the magnificent site unsure of its purpose, they recognized how powerful and spiritual the space used to be. The titles of its many pyramids and north-south axis, known as the Way of the Dead, all come from the Aztec civilization. We don't know the name or language of the culture that created the powerful Mesoamerican complex. The city held the three largest temple structures in Mesoamerica, the Pyramid of the Sun, the Pyramid of the Moon, and the Temple of the Feathered Serpent. It was also the sixth-largest city in the world in the 550 A.D. The arts were no less remarkable, including their architecture, mural paintings, ceramics, and sculptures.
The life stone masks at MONAH are just two of perhaps hundreds that exist. However, these two are among the rarest for their preserved inlays; most masks would have had inlaid eyes or teeth but have lost the materials through time. These two masks' attributes belong to the narrow standardized Teotihuacan style. They feature a genderless, ageless facial expression with open alert eyes, narrow nose, full lips, and an open mouth. While we think of masks as wearable objects, these are recognized more as ritual, stationery items likely placed on a shrine or funerary bundle. They are too heavy to be worn, and very few have carved out backsides to fit a human face. The perforations on the ears of the masks are debated. Some scholars believed perishable materials would have used these drilled holes to attach the mask to something else. On the other hand, others believe they were used to place on perishable jewelry.
In many ancient Mesoamerican cultures, masks take on a transformative role that gives the individual a new identity and powers. For example, the Olmec used masks to transform a person into an animal-like creature during certain rituals. Under the condition that some of these masks were attached to funerary bundles, the mask would absorb the person's spirit (tonalli) and animated the bundle as the person. An important person's funerary bundle would have been displayed in temples.
The Teotihuacan Masks represent a long tradition of honoring the spirits of the dead. While they don't represent the same tradition of Día de Los Muertos today, it shows how foundational ideas evolve through time. Each Mesoamerican culture had specific traditions that honored their ancestors. For example, in West Mexico, they placed Colima Dogs in the tombs of the dead for guidance in the afterlife. Today the Aztec culture shares the most in common with broader Día de Los Muertos traditions. You can learn more about the history of Día de Los Muertos in the Museum of Native American History's virtual celebration! We will be hosting Día de Los Muertos storytelling, history, and a guide on making an altar ( or ofrenda)!
Blog by Jazlyn Sanderson
References:
Evans, Susan Toby. "Teotihuacan Masks." In Ancient Mexican Art at Dumbarton Oaks, 44-55. Dumbarton Oaks, 2010.
Miller, Mary. The Art of Mesoamerica: From Olmec to Aztec. Thames and Hudson World of Art, 2012.
Brandes, Stanley. "Iconography in Mexico's Day of the Dead: Origins and Meaning." Ethnohistory 45 no. 2 (Spring 1998): 181-218.
De Orellana, Margarita, et al. “Day of the Dead Ritual Serenity.” Artes de México No. 62 (2011): 65-80.