The Gurulu is a mythical bird, and on this Raksha mask it is caught in the middle of its oldest fight. The face ends in a heavy, hooked beak in deep maroon, and a white cobra, its scales drawn in red and black, rises up the centre of the face from the beak to the crown: the bird's prey, worn like a trophy.
The detail. Two tall side panels stand like folded wings, their upper halves painted with white feathers and orange scrolls and their lower halves as broad ovals dotted in red. The crown is a cluster of pointed panels in yellow, red and maroon, and the whole surface is worked with small painted feathers, scales and curls in yellow, orange, green and white.
Construction. The mask is carved from wood in three main parts, a hollow central face and two side panels, and painted by hand.
The bird and the cobra. In Sri Lankan tradition the Gurulu is the sworn enemy of the naga, the cobra, and a relative of Garuda, the great bird of Hindu and Buddhist story on which the god Vishnu rides. As a Raksha mask it is associated with power and renown, and it is one of the forms still made in the mask workshops of the southern coast. More on Raksha masks and mask making in Sri Lanka.
Sizes. Offered in a range of heights up to 60 cm (24 in). Hand carving and hand painting mean each mask differs slightly from the photographs. Two related bird masks are the Mal Gurulu and the Raja Gurulu.
