Portrait Mask

The masking traditions of the Northwest Coast First Nations are rich and diverse. Haida portrait masks were typically carved with a naturalistic quality and danced at important social occasions such as the potlatch. Made to be worn on the face, the performers enacted particular mythological scenes, relayed the oral history of a particular family or clan, or the history of the people it belonged to. Displaying portraits of specific individuals or a mythic ancestor, the performances dramatized communal and familial histories as well as representing historical or mythical events.