Noh mask. "Ko-Omote" character. Ko-omote is Noh theatre mask. This mask represents a young woman who is calm. The Ko-omote mask represents the traditional Heian beauty featuring shaved eyebrows, blackened teeth, and neat hair. Some ko-mote masks have lips that are farther apart and fuller looking cheeks. You can tell how old a character is supposed to be depending on how wide the masks eyes. The ko-mote masks have eyes that are closer together to represent that it is a younger woman.
These objects are only a part of our collections, of which there are more than 350,000 objects. This information comes from our collections database. Some of this is incomplete and there may be errors. This part of the website is also still under construction, so there may be some fields repeated or incorrectly formatted information.
The database retains language taken from historical documents to help research. Please note that some records may feature language and reflect systems of thinking that are outdated and offensive. The database also includes information on objects that are considered secret or sacred by some communities.
If you have any further information about objects in our collections, can suggest corrections to our information or if you see content requiring immediate action, please contact us: enquiry@horniman.ac.uk
