The idea of creating a death mask harks back to the time of ancient Egyptians. It was believed during this period that by taking an impression of a deceased person’s face using wax or plaster, the spirit would be able to find its body in the afterlife.
For centuries to follow, death masks would remain popular, yet be used for a myriad of reasons. Masks would be taken of unknown faces in the hopes of identification, for scientists to note changes in human physiognomy, as a reference on which to base portraits, and for the simple purpose of honoring the deceased.
In some African and Native American tribes, death masks continue to be an important spiritual item. Some believe that the masks facilitate communication between this world and the after-world during funerary rites.
The first time I saw a death mask, I was in The Museum of the Paranormal in Niagara-On-The-Lake, Ontario. I was poking around the museum when all of a sudden I saw a slab of clay that looked awfully similar to Alfred Hitchcock. Indeed, I was looking at old Al’s death mask.
You never forget something as monumental as viewing your first death mask…
Here are a few of the more famous death masks of historic figures:
Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon’s death mask was created on May 7, 1821, a day after he died at age 51.
Ludwig Van Beethoven
Josef Danhauser made the first plaster cast of the composer’s face on March 28, 1827, two days after his death.
Bartolomeo Vanzetti & Nicola Sacco
In 1920, Bartolomeo Vanzetti (top), along with Nicola Sacco (bottom), were convicted of slaying two men during a Massachusetts armed robbery. The two Italian immigrants were put to death by electric chair on August 23, 1927.
Oliver Cromwell
When ‘Lord Protector of the Commonwealth’ Oliver Cromwell died on September 3, 1658, a wax mold was made of his features by Thomas Simon.
Dante Alighieri
The Florentine poet died in exile in Ravenna, Italy in 1321. This death mask was created afterwards and though its whereabouts are disputed, its most famous replica is now guarded in Palazzo Vecchio in Florence.
John Dillinger
The famous American gangster’s mask was created after his Chicago death on July 22, 1934.
