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A carved wooden mask slightly smaller than the face.
Also known as: Nōmen, Noh theatre mask, Japanese carved mask, Wooden mask with a still face
A noh mask is carved slightly smaller than the wearer's face and its expression is deliberately ambiguous, so that tilting the head changes what it appears to show — down reads as sorrow, up as joy. The performer changes the expression by moving, not the mask.
Denotes the carved wooden masks of Japanese noh theatre, each a defined type used for a defined class of role.
Contexts: Music
Is carved with a deliberately neutral expression that appears to change as the wearer tilts the head — downward reading as sorrow, upward as brightness — which is the technique known as terasu and kumorasu.
Contexts: Music
Is made slightly smaller than an adult face, so the wearer's jawline remains visible at the edges.
Contexts: Music
Is used only by the principal actor in most plays, with other roles played unmasked.
Contexts: Music
A carved and painted wooden mask of a human face with narrow horizontal openings for sight and speech, a smooth pale finish and a deliberately indeterminate expression.