Transformation

Feline-Head Bottle
Multiple points of view are combined in the decoration of this vessel, tip it and see!

Feline-Head Bottle

North Wind mask
The Yup’ik peoples, in one of the world’s coldest climates, made these ceremonial masks during the long winters.

North Wind Mask

Mask of Agamemnon
“I have gazed into the face of Agamemnon,” boasted the man who discovered it—but is it really the Homeric hero?

Mask of Agamemnon

Correggio, Jupiter and Io, detail
With her open mouth, tilted head, and soft flesh, Io exudes sensuality, giving herself up willingly to Jupiter.

Correggio, Jupiter and Io

Doe Shaman
We don’t know what the makers of this figure called her, but we can tell that she is at once human and animal.

Doe Shaman Effigy

Olmec
This was buried in an offering at an Aztec temple, some 1500 years later and far from where it was made.

Olmec mask

Native American Northwest
Wearers can toggle between the faces of animals and mythical beings—all with the tug of a string.

Transformation masks

The Paracas Textile
This nearly 2000-year-old old textile survives thanks to the arid environment of southern Peru where it was buried.

The Paracas Textile