Monday, December 14, 2020

Masks of Taketomi Island

Taketomi


Taketomi Island is a small island just off Ishigaki Island in the chain of islands now called Okinawa. It is most well known for the water buffalo-drawn carts (click here) that take tourist around the small village which is a preservation district.

Being a mask-maker myself, though admittedly somewhat lapsed, I was intrigued by the masks in the local folklore museum that was housed in the villages small buddhist temple.


There are obvious similarities with the masks I found on nearby Ishigaki Island (click here)


There are also some similarities between Okinawan masks and Japanese masks, with the mask below very similar to a Hannya mask.
 

Ishigaki Sea Salt

Buy Handmade Masks From Japan

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