Bangsangsi Mask

The Bangsangsi mask was used in the royal court to ward off evil spirits during narye (exorcism rites) and funerals. In the palace it was used at events such as royal processions or the reception of envoys, when four men dressed in red robes and wearing the Bangsangsi mask, together with others wearing various masks, would strike out and threaten with fire and colour to drive away evil spirits. This ritual, which resembled a kind of theatrical performance, seems to have been one of the important rites performed to pray for peace and safety ahead of major state affairs. At funerals, it led the way at the very front of the bier procession, and upon arrival at the grave site, it drove away evil spirits from the spot where the body was to be laid. The masks used for this were made of paper and wood, and once used, they were either buried with the body or burned. This custom dates back to the Zhou dynasty in China, but in Korea it was already being used in funerals from around the fifth to sixth centuries in Silla, and its use in exorcism rites appears to have continued from 1040, the sixth year of King Jeongjong of Goryeo, through to the Joseon period. The Bangsangsi mask was discovered in 1970 in a storehouse at Changdeokgung Palace, together with funerary implements. It is a large mask, 78cm long and 73cm wide, carved from pine wood with a face bearing four eyes, along with a nose, mouth, and eyebrows. Its smiling face, deeply carved wrinkles, and two large ears are striking. Traces of green and red paint remain on the eyebrows, but the mask is now largely a brown colour close to that of the bare wood. Since the four eyes of this Joseon-period mask are not pierced through, it is thought not to have been an actual mask worn at funerals but rather a full-size model, or a ceremonial mask used in the palace to ward off evil spirits by being hung on a wall. Among Bangsangsi masks that have been used since the Goryeo period, this is the only surviving example from the Joseon period, and it is important material for the study of funerary customs and the history of folk performance.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Yongsan-gu, Seoul

Designation

National Folklore Heritage · 국가민속문화유산