The world's oldest stone masks on display

The oldest stone masks in the world about 9,000 years old displayed in the exhibition titled "Face to Face: The Oldest Masks in the World" in Israel until September 11, 2014.

Researchers think these masks could have been worn comfortably on the face during ancient rituals. This mask comes from the site of Horvat Duma in the Judean Hills. (Picture from: http://www.foxnews.com/)

The researchers suspect artifacts masks with a stiff smile and large eye holes that represent the soul of ancestors who died and was worn during the ceremony and ritual of the Stone Age. Before showing off the rare artifacts in a glass box the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, the curator said the masks were brought together for comparison studies.

Three-dimensional modeling shows that most of the mask is very comfortable to wear in the face, said curator Debby Hershman as reported by LiveScience, on Thursday, March 13, 2014. "The holes to allow the eyes to see a large area, and the division of that fit the contours of the human face," he said in an email.

9,000 years old prehistoric stone masks of the Israeli area exhibited at the Israel Museum from March 11 until September 11, 2014. (Picture from: http://www.livescience.com/)

In addition there are a few holes in the edge of some ancient masks may be used to facilitate face to wear. Perforation is likely punctuated hair so it looks more natural mask or mask with a strap to attach to a pillar or other structure.

The masks come from various sites in the desert and the hills of Judea, according to a museum statement. The possibility of artifacts dating back to the Neolithic, when people started to leave and live a nomadic lifestyle as well as farming and animal husbandry.

Two stone mask already in the museum. The mask comes from the Nahal Hemar cave in the cliffs near the Dead Sea, between Israel and the Palestinians, and that both have been found at archaeological sites near Horvat Duma.

Other artifacts are on loan from private collectors Judy and Michael Steinhardt from New York. Origin of the artifacts was not known, but based on the analysis of the mask material, researchers consider that most of the masks came from the hills of Judea or the Judean foothills.. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | LIVESCIENCE]
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