Definition

Noun: A death mask is a cast, typically made of wax or plaster, created by taking an impression directly from the face of a deceased person shortly after death.

Usage

The term death mask is used to refer to the physical object itself. It is a compound noun and is treated as a singular count noun. * Historians studied the death mask to understand the leader's features. * The museum displayed a famous death mask from the 18th century. * Making a death mask was a common practice in the 19th century.

Advanced Usage

• Historical and Artistic Context: Death masks have been created for notable figures (e.g., monarchs, writers, composers) for purposes of portraiture, historical record, and, in earlier times, as a guide for sculptors creating posthumous busts or effigies.
  • Napoleon Bonaparte's death mask is one of the most replicated in history.
• Anthropological and Scientific Context: In some contexts, death masks have been used for scientific study or as part of funeral rites.
  • The death mask provided forensic details about the individual's bone structure.

Variants and Related Words

• Life mask (noun): A cast taken from the face of a living person. This is the direct counterpart to a death mask.
• Effigy (noun): A sculpture or model of a person, which may sometimes be created using a death mask as a reference.
• Cast (noun): The object produced by the molding process; a death mask is a type of cast.

Synonyms

• Posthumous mask: A more formal term with the same meaning.
• Mortuary mask: A less common synonym, emphasizing the funerary context.

Notes on Meaning

The term death mask refers specifically to the object created from the deceased. It does not refer to a state of being, an emotion, or a metaphorical covering. Its meaning is concrete and historical/anthropological.

Noun

1. a cast taken from the face of a dead person