Which characters do the masks on sale represent?
The barong is a protective creature, lion-like or dragon-like, with a shaggy body and a large head. It belongs to a long story that is performed across the island, usually at village and temple events and for visitors. Rangda is its counterpart: a witch-like figure with long hair and a fierce face, who stands for disorder and threat. In the performance the two face each other, and the story plays out between them. Rangda masks are common on sale and are often among the most striking pieces in a market, but the face is only part of the object. The performance gives it its meaning.
Topeng masks belong to a masked dance theatre in which one performer changes character through a sequence of faces. Different masks stand for different characters, from refined court figures to comic village ones. A mask carved for a dancer is shaped to be worn and seen from the back of a stage, so its features are often bolder and simpler than those of a souvenir carving.
Does a mask become sacred once you own it?
Some masks do, in the sense that a family or a temple treats them with care. A mask that has been used in a ceremony, or blessed as part of a temple’s ritual, is handled differently from one that has never been used. Some families and temples treat a consecrated mask with care, so ask your host where a mask like this should sit before you hang it. A new mask carved for sale is usually decorative, but a seller may still describe it as ritual. Ask who carved it, what it was made for, and whether it has been used in any ceremony. A straight answer is more useful than a confident one.
The first-time mistake is to buy a mask and hang it up without asking anyone where a piece like this should sit.
How do decorative, performance and ritual masks differ?
| Souvenir carving | Performance mask | Mask used in ritual | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Made for | Sale to visitors | A dancer in a performance | A ceremony at a temple or family shrine |
| Finish | Often smooth and bright, with painted details | Built to be worn, with sturdy straps and bold features | Often plain, and may show signs of use |
| Handling | Free to handle and hang | Handled with care by the dancers | Treated with respect and not used as decoration |
| What to ask | Who carved it and where it was sold | Which character it plays and who wears it | Whether it has been used in ceremony, and where it should sit |
A souvenir mask can go wherever you like in your own home. A performance mask is a working object for a dancer, and a ritual mask belongs to a ceremony. The table is a guide to the question to ask, not a rule for every piece, and the answer can differ from one seller to the next. Puppets are a different theatre tradition from masks, and the shadow puppet theatre page explains how a show is watched.
What about guardian figures at temple gates?
Guardian figures, often in stone, stand at temple gates and entrances and watch over the threshold. They are often set in pairs, and in many places they are treated as part of the temple rather than as garden ornaments. Do not climb one, lean on it to be photographed, or move it. If you want to buy a guardian figure, ask whether it was made for a gate or for a garden, because the two are different objects. Stone figures are heavy, so ask how a piece would be packed and shipped before you agree to anything. A figure that has been moved, broken or repainted may no longer look the way its makers intended, so ask the seller where it stood before it was sold. The craft villages page covers Batubulan, the stone-carving village where many of these figures are made.
How should you pack a mask or figure for the trip home?
Wrap a carved piece in cloth rather than plastic, so it can breathe in humid weather, and keep it out of direct sun in a parked car. Do not wrap a sacred object in anything you would not want touched. If a guardian figure or a sacred tree already has a cloth wrapped around it, leave the cloth in place. The textiles page explains poleng, the black and white check most often wrapped around sacred objects, and why it should not be sat on or pulled.
Where to go next
- For buying masks and carvings at a market, read the markets page first, since it covers how to compare stalls and how to bargain.
- If you want to see the carving yards where the work is made, the craft villages page explains how a visit works.
- our fuller guide to Balinese cultural customs covers the customs behind the rituals you will see.