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| Plague Doctors' Mask with Hood |
Tykhon Verygyn is a self-taught leather artist whose work is all handmade without the use of any machines.
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| Plague Doctors' Mask |
While not a medical mask, these amazing doctor's masks are perfect for Halloween, steampunk, cosplay, or theater.
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| Plague Doctors' Mask |
Thick, soft vegetable tanned leather is used and hand stitched with waxed thread. Buckles allow for size adjustment.
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| Steampunk Leather Mask |
Watch for a future post featuring Verygyn's incredible leather journals which can be viewed in his shop on Etsy.
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| Leather Face Mask |
Visit the links listed in the sources below to see more
leatherwork by Verygyn.
History: During the 17th and 18th centuries, plague doctors believed that the poisoned air they might breath could be fumigated through the use of sweet and pungent perfumes to protect the smeller. Physicians prescribed what was believed to be protective concoctions and plague antidotes. The beak-shaped masks were filled with perfume and herbs. Masks were filled with a combination of 55 herbs and other components such as viper flesh powder, cinnamon, myrrh, and honey, known as theriac, believing that the shape of the mask would allow enough time for the air to be suffused by the protective herbs before hitting the nostrils and lungs.
Sadly enough, until the rise of germ theory of disease, plague doctors were unaware that transmission comes from contact with contaminated fluid or tissue and inhalation of infectious droplets from sneezing and coughing and that wearing a mask filled with herbs having holes near the nostrils did not protect from the plague.
SOURCES:
National Geographic (more history)
Photos used with
permission of the artist.
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