Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Shaman's mask
Unrecorded Tlingit artist Native American
Not on view
This malevolent mask manifests a powerful spirit being that helped a shaman mediate between the worlds of matter and spirit. The sucker disks on its cheeks and its peaked, beak-like mouth identify it as an octopus. Like shamans, the octopus undergoes transformations: it squeezes its large body into extremely narrow crevices and eludes danger by releasing ink and changing the color and texture of its skin.
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