Talk:Death mask

1
The second myth -- the Laerdal CPR manikins -- is presented as fact (and it is). Why is it in the "Myths" section? Slightly Drunk 02:11, 17 December 2006 (UTC)

I have just removed the entry fromldoodldoo the "Myths" section, and added the L'Inconnue de la Seine / Rescui Anne story to a new "Trivia" section with reference to a page on the Laerdal company website that confirms the "myth". Boingo the Clown, Canada, June 7, 2007


 * Seems those Resusci Anne links are all broken now. :-(  Also, what is a "pastologist"??  Some kind of historian?  :-) Should that be "pathologist"? --Annihilannic (talk) 02:23, 31 August 2012 (UTC)

You can have a life cast of your face if you want.
Yes, it is really called “life cast”! I have one myself so I know how such are made. The technique involved is similar to making a death mask. The hair on the head is usually covered with soft plastic. All skin covered by the mould is smeared with petroleum jelly or melted butter. Otherwise the removal of the mould would likely be painful. Also, the mouth or nostrils have to be left open to allow for breath. When the mould has been removed the hole(s) are obstructed. I personally prefer to leave the nostrils open since nostrils obstructed afterwards look more natural than an obstructed mouth. Those are the only differences from making a death mask.

2008-01-19 Lena Synnerholm, Märsta, Sweden. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.229.19.152 (talk) 17:37, 19 January 2008 (UTC)

Slight distortions of the features?
How does the weight of the plaster slightly dissort the features of the face?

2007-02-19 Lena Synnerholm, Märsta, Sweden.

Historical examples are wrong
Tuthankhamun’s face have been reconstructed from his skull. When the reconstruction was made by people not knowing who he was it showed no resemblance to the mask covering his head. In other words it was no death mask at all! Worse, the golden mask covering “Agamemnon’s” face can’t be a cast: it is not even anatomically correct! Please check your sources and ask yourself how reliable they are.

2007-03-10 Lena Synnerholm, Märsta, Sweden.

Death masks doesn't need to be anatomically correct! If they are used in burial ceremonies, than they are considered to be death masks! Bali Death Mask is nothing like the person being buried (some of them have a monkey skull)!

Stamba (talk) 14:27, 10 April 2010 (UTC)


 * Perhaps this page should be split in two, with death masks (casts made after death) separated from funeral masks (mask placed over the head of a diseased person. They don't seem to have much to do with one another, with death masks being more about preserving the likeness of a person for future reference, and a funeral mask being used to decorate a corpse for a funeral. --~ AwaweWiki (talk) 21:57, 4 April 2022 (UTC)

Then the difference should be made more clear in the text.

2010-05-13 Lena Synnerholm, Märsta, Sweden.

Pseudoscientific?
"Proponents of phrenology and ethnography also used both death masks and life masks (taken from living subjects) for scientific and pseudoscientific purposes."

A philosophical question; at a point in time when something like phrenology, which has previously been thought to be valid, is first studied in a scientific manner, but before it has been demonstrated that it is invalid and without scientific merit, is the study of that field, for example, phrenology, "pseudoscientific"? Surely at that point it is a science which is destined to be a dead end. Surely it only becames pseudoscientific when people study the field with techniques which masquerade as scientific, but which are faulty (deliberately or otherwise) and therefore unable to yield valid results?

Shroud of Turin
I was just wondering why isn't there any reference to Shroud of Turin (Jesus's Death Mask)? Wikipedia has an extensive article about it. This one is as famous as Pharaohs death masks.

Stamba (talk) 14:28, 10 April 2010 (UTC)


 * $$\because \!\,$$ shroud ≠ death mask, I'd say. Trigaranus (talk) 15:11, 11 April 2010 (UTC)

File:Making Death Mask Edit 4.jpg to appear as POTD soon
Hello! This is a note to let the editors of this article know that File:Making Death Mask Edit 4.jpg will be appearing as picture of the day on August 30, 2012. You can view and edit the POTD blurb at Template:POTD/2012-08-30. If this article needs any attention or maintenance, it would be preferable if that could be done before its appearance on the Main Page so Wikipedia doesn't look bad. :) Thanks! — howcheng  {chat} 17:03, 28 August 2012 (UTC)

Some new editions
I have added some facts. Is there someone out there who could comment? I am a newbie! Thank you! Thales Rodrigues de Miranda (talk) 13:07, 7 May 2018 (UTC)

When did this tradition end?
Words like archaic, grim, ghastly and macabre comes to mind. Like, who was the last UK King to have his mask taken ? This tradition died out in the XX's because public opinion found it to be horriffic. 2A01:799:31C:5200:C4FC:C088:D1D3:40C0 (talk) 12:19, 4 December 2021 (UTC)

I have a death mask hand made in bronze or copper. It randomly found me and I found it greatfully.   But can't figure out the person.
Are you able to help? 24.244.23.190 (talk) 04:38, 2 January 2022 (UTC)

Need citations?
Noticing that some lengthy and hard to verify statements are included in this article without citations to back them up. Specifically, can someone find a citation for the following: "It is sometimes possible to identify portraits that have been painted from death masks because of the characteristic slight distortions of the features caused by the weight of the plaster during the making of the mould." 2601:601:51C:A4A:C958:1238:C4C1:EB21 (talk) 17:39, 30 July 2023 (UTC)