Yup’ik Mask, Lower Yukon, Alaska

Yup'ik masks from the Lower Yukon region of Alaska represent a rich ceremonial and artistic tradition created by the Yup'ik people, indigenous inhabitants of southwestern Alaska. These masks were crafted by skilled shamans and carvers for use in elaborate winter ceremonies known as Yuraq, serving as conduits between the human and spirit worlds. Collected extensively by ethnographers and explorers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, these objects now appear regularly at major auction houses and are held in prestigious museum collections worldwide.