Roman terracotta comic mask
Unattributed, 1st – 2nd century CE
Dimensions: 152 x 145 x 45 mm
JLMC 217.14. Donated by the PhiloLogie Society, 2014. From the collection of Maxwell Coulbeck.
This is a Roman theatre mask made from terracotta, depicting a male character. It is a beige, almost pink, colour and the terracotta is embedded with various stones, pebbles and other debris. The mask features two uniform eye holes and a hole for the mouth, as well as a small suspension hole just above the character’s forehead.
The mask was probably mould-made, which is suggested by the face being so smooth and uniform. The reverse surface is uneven from when the clay was pressed in to the mould, and there are fingerprints on the left reverse as well, suggesting the mask was made by hand. The reverse is very organic and bumpy.
The mask appears to represent a male character with long braided hair, visible eye sockets and a nose that seems very flat and worn. The character also has a natural shaped, wide-open mouth.
This ancient mask would not have been intended as an actual costume piece, but rather as an artistic interpretation of a true theatre masks. In ancient times, copies of masks like this may have been meant to be a form of household decoration, a votive offering to Dionysos, or a funerary offering for an actor.