A mysterious fascination with the search for insight from an individuals lifecast, has long been a major part of the historic collection and obsession with the Death Masks of celebrities and criminals, in some cases, like the famous poet Dante Alighieri, his Death Mask is still venerated by millions of museum visitors annually. Death Masks were also made in the name of Phrenology science - the use of the now discredited science of Phrenology was an attempt to understand criminality, through measuring the shape of the skull and reading the bumps on the cranium.
NED KELLY DEATH MASK 1:1 REPLICA
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FREDERICK BAILEY DEEMING DEATH MASK 1:1 REPLICA
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NED KELLY DEATH MASK ~ PICK-UP ONLY - approximate weight 5kg (it is hollow but it is still heavy Plaster) ...
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FREDERICK BAILEY DEEMING Death Mask Replica 1:1 JACK THE RIPPER ~ Fibreglass Cast Sculpture - highly durable for postage options - please contact me for further details on postage options. |
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PLASTER REPLICA $350.00 + GST |
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This is a unique Plaster Replica 1:1 (57cm circumference x 32cm height), of the antique Ned Kelly Death Mask taken in 1880, it is hand sculpted from photographic references and custom made in aged Plaster, that will stand proudly in any display or on any solid mantlepiece as a 'Respectful Iconic Artwork' of one of the most infamous legendary Australian Bushrangers. Displaying also the real solemn consequences of rebellious action under a tyrannical Government.
Edward 'Ned' Kelly (December 1854(?) – 11 November 1880) was an Australian Bushranger, Outlaw, Gang Leader, convicted Police murderer and a legendary cultural icon. One of the last Bushrangers, he is best known for wearing a helmet and body suit of bulletproof armour alongside his similarly suited Gang, during their final shootout with the Police.
The Kelly's were a poor family on a 'selection' farm who saw themselves as downtrodden by the Governmental 'Squattocracy' and as victims of constant Police persecution. While a teenager, Ned Kelly was arrested for associating with local Bushranger Harry Power, and served two prison terms from 1871 to 1874 for horse theft. After a violent confrontation with a Policeman at the Kelly family's home in 1878, Ned Kelly was indicted for his attempted murder. Fleeing to the bush, Ned Kelly vowed to avenge his mother, who was imprisoned for her role in the incident. After the Kelly Gang (Dan Kelly, Joe Byrne and Steve Hart), shot dead three Police trackers, the Government of Victoria proclaimed them Wanted Outlaws. The Victorian Government advertised huge rewards for the Kelly Gang capture, and these rewards increased in the following months, as the Gang’s exploits multiplied. Ned Kelly composed the ‘Jerilderie letter’ explaining his motives and the ruthless actions of Government and Police that escalate poverty and created the Kelly family's situation. The Kelly Gang avoided capture until they arrived in the town of Glenrowan in June 1880, intending to ambush a Police train, collect weapons and raise a rebellion with local farmers against the tyrannical Victorian Government. In the town’s inn, Ned Kelly, wearing the iconic homemade helmet and suit of metal armour (made from plough shares, leather and iron bolts), was wounded in the Police ‘siege’ in which Dan Kelly, Joe Byrne and Steve Hart all died. Ned Kelly survived multiple gun shots, only to be hanged in Melbourne Gaol on 11 November 1880, despite thousands of supporters attending rallies and signing a petition for his reprieve. His last words were famously reported to have been ... "Such is life" ... He was aged around 25 or 28 depending on birthdate sources.
After the execution by hanging, Kelly’s body remained suspended for 30 minutes as was required by Law, to ensure he was legally dead. The body was then placed on a handcart and wheeled out the door, across the yard and into the dead-house. There the post-execution wax mould was applied and removed so as to capture Ned Kelly's features for posterity. A newspaper reported that Kelly's body was later dissected by medical students who removed his head and organs for study. Dissection outside of a coronial enquiry was illegal at the time and public outrage at the rumour raised real fears of public disorder, leading the commissioner of Police to write to the Gaol's governor, who denied that a dissection had ever taken place. However saw cuts on a piece of his occipital bone recovered in 2011 confirm that a dissection had indeed been illegally done and the Gaol governor had lied to cover it up.
The mystery of Ned Kelly's skull also has an incredibly awful history, as being removed from the body and used for scientific analysis, then abused as a Police paperweight before being buried, exhumed for display in 1929, the skull went missing and was discovered in a safe in 1952 and redisplayed, then he skull was stolen from the display in 1978! Finally in 2009 the media widely reported that the missing skull had been returned to the Kelly family - however DNA proved the returned skull was not even related to the Kelly family; thus the real Ned Kelly skull is still missing!
It is alleged to have been Waxworks proprietor, Maximillian Ludwig Kreitmayer (1831-1906), who shaved the head of Ned Kelly and prepared the wax mould for the many Plaster copies made of the Death Mask that exist in Australian museums today, including one that Kreitmayer displayed in his own Waxworks Museum in Melbourne on Bourke Street.
Death Masks were taken of criminals and celebrities alike before photography became commonly employed after the British Jack the Ripper case in 1888.
- A short History of Ned Kelly and the Death Mask technique.
Edward 'Ned' Kelly (December 1854(?) – 11 November 1880) was an Australian Bushranger, Outlaw, Gang Leader, convicted Police murderer and a legendary cultural icon. One of the last Bushrangers, he is best known for wearing a helmet and body suit of bulletproof armour alongside his similarly suited Gang, during their final shootout with the Police.
The Kelly's were a poor family on a 'selection' farm who saw themselves as downtrodden by the Governmental 'Squattocracy' and as victims of constant Police persecution. While a teenager, Ned Kelly was arrested for associating with local Bushranger Harry Power, and served two prison terms from 1871 to 1874 for horse theft. After a violent confrontation with a Policeman at the Kelly family's home in 1878, Ned Kelly was indicted for his attempted murder. Fleeing to the bush, Ned Kelly vowed to avenge his mother, who was imprisoned for her role in the incident. After the Kelly Gang (Dan Kelly, Joe Byrne and Steve Hart), shot dead three Police trackers, the Government of Victoria proclaimed them Wanted Outlaws. The Victorian Government advertised huge rewards for the Kelly Gang capture, and these rewards increased in the following months, as the Gang’s exploits multiplied. Ned Kelly composed the ‘Jerilderie letter’ explaining his motives and the ruthless actions of Government and Police that escalate poverty and created the Kelly family's situation. The Kelly Gang avoided capture until they arrived in the town of Glenrowan in June 1880, intending to ambush a Police train, collect weapons and raise a rebellion with local farmers against the tyrannical Victorian Government. In the town’s inn, Ned Kelly, wearing the iconic homemade helmet and suit of metal armour (made from plough shares, leather and iron bolts), was wounded in the Police ‘siege’ in which Dan Kelly, Joe Byrne and Steve Hart all died. Ned Kelly survived multiple gun shots, only to be hanged in Melbourne Gaol on 11 November 1880, despite thousands of supporters attending rallies and signing a petition for his reprieve. His last words were famously reported to have been ... "Such is life" ... He was aged around 25 or 28 depending on birthdate sources.
After the execution by hanging, Kelly’s body remained suspended for 30 minutes as was required by Law, to ensure he was legally dead. The body was then placed on a handcart and wheeled out the door, across the yard and into the dead-house. There the post-execution wax mould was applied and removed so as to capture Ned Kelly's features for posterity. A newspaper reported that Kelly's body was later dissected by medical students who removed his head and organs for study. Dissection outside of a coronial enquiry was illegal at the time and public outrage at the rumour raised real fears of public disorder, leading the commissioner of Police to write to the Gaol's governor, who denied that a dissection had ever taken place. However saw cuts on a piece of his occipital bone recovered in 2011 confirm that a dissection had indeed been illegally done and the Gaol governor had lied to cover it up.
The mystery of Ned Kelly's skull also has an incredibly awful history, as being removed from the body and used for scientific analysis, then abused as a Police paperweight before being buried, exhumed for display in 1929, the skull went missing and was discovered in a safe in 1952 and redisplayed, then he skull was stolen from the display in 1978! Finally in 2009 the media widely reported that the missing skull had been returned to the Kelly family - however DNA proved the returned skull was not even related to the Kelly family; thus the real Ned Kelly skull is still missing!
It is alleged to have been Waxworks proprietor, Maximillian Ludwig Kreitmayer (1831-1906), who shaved the head of Ned Kelly and prepared the wax mould for the many Plaster copies made of the Death Mask that exist in Australian museums today, including one that Kreitmayer displayed in his own Waxworks Museum in Melbourne on Bourke Street.
Death Masks were taken of criminals and celebrities alike before photography became commonly employed after the British Jack the Ripper case in 1888.
