Mask for a Mummy Bundle
| Culture | Chancay |
|---|---|
| Title | Mask for a Mummy Bundle |
| Date | 1000–1450 |
| Medium | Wood and shell |
| Dimensions | Object: 10 1/2 × 6 1/8 × 3 3/4 in. (26.7 × 15.6 × 9.5 cm) Overall: 10 1/2 × 6 1/8 × 3 3/4 in. (26.7 × 15.6 × 9.5 cm) |
| Credit Line | Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University |
| Accession Number | 63.1 |
| This artwork is currently on view. | |
Mummification has a long history among the cultures of Peru, dating back at least 7,000 years. For the Chancay people, mummification was a family ritual for all levels of society. Masks where placed atop the mummified family member and wrapped with fine cloths as part of the mummy bundle.
1963, Indiana University Art Museum purchase from Origins Gallery, Boston, MA
Unidentified date, Origins Gallery acquires, Boston, MA
Unidentified dates, unidentified owner(s), possibly in Peru and/or other places [1]
Notes
[1] We do not yet know how many changes in ownership transpired between when this artwork was first made and owned to when Origins Gallery acquired it. This absence of documentation on ownership history within the cultures where the artworks were made and used is part of a larger history of collecting practices that did not record prior ownership among communities of origin.
Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.
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Cite this page
"Mask for a Mummy Bundle | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=63.1