Ceremonial Mourning Mask

The Museum of the American Indian-Heye Foundation, New York, by 1932 [1];

Transferred from the Museum of the American Indian-Heye Foundation, New York, to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1932 [2].

NOTES:

[1] According to Maria Galban, Collections Documentation Manager, National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, in an email to MacKenzie Mallon, Specialist, Provenance, December 2, 2022, NAMA curatorial files, the Museum of the American Indian-Heye Foundation only collected objects from the Americas, but would occasionally receive objects that originated elsewhere as donations or as part of a group of objects. These were retained for sale or trade, and since they were not accessioned into the MAI collection, they were therefore not catalogued and their source was not recorded in MAI documentation.

[2] In 1931, the Nelson-Atkins co-sponsored two archaeological expeditions with the Heye Foundation: one to Colombia that was directed by Gregory Mason, and a second to the Orinoco River region of Venezuela, directed by Herbert S. Dickey. The partage agreement between the two institutions specified that if the value of the found objects did not match the dollar amount invested by the Nelson-Atkins, the Heye Foundation would transfer objects from its own holdings to the Nelson-Atkins to make up the difference, while also giving the Nelson-Atkins an opportunity to purchase additional objects from the Heye Foundation. When the archaeological excavations failed to meet expectations, this was one of a group of objects that were transferred/purchased from the Heye Foundation to the Nelson-Atkins.