• Pre-1800, Japanese, ONI mask (exact age unknown).
• Evidence of extreme aging on the edges of the wood.
• Used and worn (ethnographic) as attested by the patina on the back at the chin section.
• Deeply and ergonomically carved for the wearers benefit on the reverse; excellent craftsmanship.
• Size: Approx. 8 inches x 6.5 inches

• An older style rendition of a ONI:
• Oni (鬼) are a kind of yōkai, supernatural ogre, or troll in Japanese folklore. 
• They are typically portrayed as hulking figures with one or more horns growing out of their heads. 
• Stereotypically, they are conceived of as red or blue-colored (green-colored), wearing loincloths of tiger pelt, and carrying iron clubs. 
• Depictions of oni vary widely but usually portray them as hideous, gigantic ogre-like creatures with a single horn or multiple horns emerging from their heads, with sharp claws and wild hair.
• They are often depicted wearing tiger-skin loincloths and carrying iron clubs called kanabō (金棒).
• This image leads to the expression "oni with an iron club" (鬼に金棒 oni-ni-kanabō), that is, to be invincible or undefeatable.
• Their skin may be any number of colors, but red, blue, and green are particularly common.
• They may sometimes also be depicted as black-skinned, or yellow-skinned.
• They may occasionally be depicted with a third eye on their forehead,or extra fingers and toes.
• An old etymology for "oni" is that the word derives from on, the on'yomi reading of a character (隠) meaning "to hide or conceal", due to oni having the tendency of "hiding behind things, not wishing to appear". 
• This explanation is found in the 10th century dictionary Wamyōshō, which reveals that the oni at the time had a different meaning, defined as "a soul/spirit of the dead".
• The character for oni, 鬼 (pinyin: guǐ) in Chinese also means a dead or ancestral spirit, and not necessarily an evil specter.
• Accordingly, Chinese (Taoist) origins for the concept of oni has been proposed by Takahashi Masaaki (ja).
• The oni was syncretized with Hindu-Buddhist creatures such as the man-devouring yaksha and the rakshasa, and became the oni who tormented sinners as wardens of Jigoku (Hell),administering sentences passed down by Hell's magistrate, King Yama (Enma Daiō).
• The hungry ghosts called gaki (餓鬼) has also been sometimes considered a type of oni (the letter "ki" 鬼 is also read "oni").
• Some scholars have even argued that the oni was entirely a concept of Buddhist mythology.
• The traditional bean-throwing custom to drive out oni is practiced during Setsubun festival in February.
• It involves people casting roasted soybeans indoors or out of their homes and shouting "Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!" ("鬼は外！福は内！", "Oni go out! Blessings come in!"
• This custom has grown from the medieval ritual of tsuina (Chinese: nuo) or oni-yarai, an year-end rite to drive away oni (ghosts).
• Regionally around Tottori Prefecture during this season, a charm made of holly-leaves and dried sardine heads are used as guard against oni.