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Demon Lion Mask, from the Lorillard Building, 87 Gold Street, NYC (demolished 1962)

American Art

CULTURE American
MEDIUM Cast iron
DATES 1837
DIMENSIONS 19 x 24 x 6 in., 220 lb. (48.3 x 61 x 15.2 cm, 99.79kg)  (show scale)
COLLECTIONS American Art
ACCESSION NUMBER 63.239.22
CREDIT LINE Gift of Anonymous Arts Recovery Society
CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Grotesque demon lion mask, painted cast iron. Primitive in quality of design (but not technique). Full face, high cheekbones, bulging eyeballs, protruding tongue and fangs. Heavy creases around mouth. Source: Lorillard Building, 87 Gold Street, between Spruce and Franklin, NYC; demolished 1962. One of three masks separating the two-bay facade, attached to cast-iron lintel; the building was known for early use of cast-iron structural parts on the first two floors.
MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
CAPTION American. Demon Lion Mask, from the Lorillard Building, 87 Gold Street, NYC (demolished 1962), 1837. Cast iron, 19 x 24 x 6 in., 220 lb. (48.3 x 61 x 15.2 cm, 99.79kg). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anonymous Arts Recovery Society, 63.239.22. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 63.239.22_in_situ_bw.jpg)
IMAGE exterior, 63.239.22_in_situ_bw.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
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RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY
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American. <em>Demon Lion Mask, from the Lorillard Building, 87 Gold Street, NYC (demolished 1962)</em>, 1837. Cast iron, 19 x 24 x 6 in., 220 lb. (48.3 x 61 x 15.2 cm, 99.79kg). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anonymous Arts Recovery Society, 63.239.22. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 63.239.22_in_situ_bw.jpg)