Ask John: What is the Significance of Fox Masks in Japanese Culture?

Question:
What is the significance of fox masks in Japanese culture? I’ve seen them in Tekken, Rurouni Kenshin, Yu Yu Hakusho… Are there any retailers that sell the kitsune masks?

Answer:
The Japanese fox mask is a product of two streams of Japanese tradition and culture- the mythic and the social. The “kitsune” is traditionally considered a magical beast capable of physical shape shifting and supernatural disguise. The “kyubi kitsune,” or nine-tailed fox is said to be the oldest and most powerful. Examples of the kyubi kitsune appear in anime including Hyper Police and Supergal. The transforming fox and the transformation power of similar animals is a central conceit in Studio Ghibli’s film Pom Poko. In fact, the legend of transforming foxes is such a culturally ingrained element of Japanese culture that the convention of answering the telephone with “moshi moshi” is actually based in the superstitious belief that foxes cannot say “moshi moshi” thus the person speaking is a real human and not a fox in disguise.

Japanese “noh” theater has also existed since at least the 14th century. In this highly formal theater of dance, drama, music and poetry, any character portrayed who is not a middle aged man living in the present will wear a mask. As foxes are such a significant element of Japanese folklore, it’s only natural to expect that kitsune masks would be among the roughly 80 different styles of Noh masks used in traditional Noh theater.

As an element of traditional Japanese culture, “omen” (masks) are a common staple of festivals and are often glimpsed in anime as children’s prizes or novelty items for sale during community festivals. True noh masks, though, are individual, hand crafted works of art made by master Japanese craftsmen who carve these wooden masks specifically for particular performers. Noh masks including the kitsune mask, are available through numerous retailers online that specialize in masks and Japanese collectables, but authentic pieces usually range in the $300 to $400 range.