Face-mask and wig used by Covenanting minister Alexander Peden

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This face-mask and wig was used by Alexander Peden, a Covenanting minister from Ayrshire. Peden used the mask and wig as a disguise when preaching at 'conventicles' - illegal outdoor services.

The cheeks of the mask have been reddened and three long strips of wood stitched inside the chin to resemble lower teeth. The mask is shaped to the face by a T-shaped thong sewn inside.

The mask was discovered in the 1840s in a cottage near Cumnock in Ayrshire. It belonged to the great-granddaughter of Peden's brother. Peden's relics, such as the mask, wig and sword, had been handed down through his family for generations.

Record details

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• Online ID: 000-190-001-135-C
• Image Rights Holder: National Museums Scotland
• Project: National Museums Scotland
  Project description   View all records in project
• Ref: National Museums Scotland  H.NT 240
• Date: 1670s and 1680s
  Around 1670
  c. 1660 - 1670
  
• Material: Leather; fabric, dark red and brown; hair; feathers, brown; wood
  Linen; hair
  Mask / face, false
  Wig
  
• Dimensions: 235 mm H x 260 mm W
  458 mm L x 250 mm Dia
  
• What: Mask / face, false
  Wig
  
• Subject:
• Who: Reverend Alexander Peden (Owner)
  Reverend Alexander Peden (Owner)
  
• Where:
• Event:
• Description: Face mask made of leather, roughly oval, worn by Alexander Peden, a covenanting minister, c. 1670s - 1680s
  Wig with a base of coarse knotted linen net to which the hair, now lacking on the crown, is attached, worn by Alexander Peden, a covenanting minister, c. 1670s - 1680s
  
• References:
  • Calder, J. (ed). The Wealth of a Nation. Edinburgh & Glasgow: NMS & Drew, 1989 
• Translations:
• Related Records: