Southern Appalachian Digital Collections

Western Carolina University (20) View all

Mask: hornet's nest

  • wcu_craft_revival-6611.jp2
  • This Indian Arts and Crafts Board photograph is of a booger mask made by Cherokee mask maker, Allen Long (1917-1983). The mask was made from a hornet’s nest. Long was born and raised in the Big Cove community in Cherokee, North Carolina. When he was 12 years old, Long learned how to make masks from his father, Will West Long (1870-1947), a medicine man and authority on Cherokee cultural traditions. Allen Long made a variety of masks including the booger mask, medicine man, warrior, and wildcat. Primarily, he carved masks from buckeye and stained them with shoe polish, a technique he used instead of the traditional red clay stain which was not permanent. In 1975, the Indian Arts and Crafts Board and Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual honored him with an exhibition of his work.