Rod puppet (zhàng tóu mù ǒu), representing the character Lao Sheng (older male), with a separate beard. Head and hands of puppet (part a) are carved from wood. Hands painted pink beige. Character has wide nose, moveable eye, large ears and a white painted face. Mouth is bright red, and there is a comma shaped marking underneath it. Eyes are black-rimmed, have black and pink lashes. Puppet has large, diagonal shaped bushy eyebrows done in black. Back of head and area around ears are painted black, imitating hair. He is wearing a dark blue cap with metal buttons along the bottom edge. The character is wearing a pink robe, with extended sleeves that drape down. The robe has a left side opening, secured with ties and metal buttons, and a small right side slit. Opening and neckline bordered with a white band, with wavy green ribbons trimming it. The band has floral motifs done in silver, gold and pink sequins, with white and silver beads. There is a large silver sequin where the opening meets the left side of the robe. Robe has a dragon, phoenix, clouds, flowers and curvilinear designs embroidered throughout. Plaid undergarment beneath robe. Puppet is operated by three bamboo rods- one large rod attached to his head, and two more are attached to each hand. Back of puppet's head was cut out and re-attached. Beard (part b) consists of long black and grey fibre attached to a wire covered with string. Shaped to fit over ears and below mouth of puppet.

Rod puppet (zhàng tóu mù ǒu), representing the character Xiao Sheng (young male). Head, hands and torso are carved from wood. Components painted beige. Character has a small nose, large ears and moveable eyes. His mouth is painted dark red and his cheeks are rosy. Eyes are black-rimmed, eyebrows are painted black and have spikes in the middle. Area around ears and back of head are painted black, imitating hair. He is wearing a dark grey-brown cap, nailed into place. Long, black strands of hair are attached to the top of the cap. The character is wearing a green robe, with extended sleeves that drape down. The robe has a left side opening, secured with metal buttons and ties, and a small right side slit. Opening is bordered with a wide white band. Cuffs have red ribbon trim with gold and green floral motifs embroidered on them. Robe decorated with curvilinear motifs along the arms and a large linear design on the front centre. All motifs done in silver, pink, purple, blue and red sequins. Character is wearing a plaid undergarment beneath the robe. Puppet is operated by three bamboo rods- one large rod attached to his torso, and two more are attached to each hand. Eyes are operated by a wooden rod, with a metal attachment, inside of the central bamboo rod. The back of the puppet’s head has been cut out and re-attached.

Hand puppet of a mouse groom. Hands and feet are made of cast resin, head has an internal wooden cone, covered in cast resin. All components are painted. Head and hands are light brown. Black lines painted across face and neck, imitating fur. He has black eyes and black bushy eyebrows. Nostrils are red, and have white whiskers below. His mouth is a long red line, with two long front teeth. Oval-like ears on either side of his head. Groom is wearing a dark grey, two-piece suit, with a white collared shirt, dark red bow tie and black shoes. Jacket is secured with two buttons along the front centre, and has a chest pocket and two flap pockets. Pants are plain. Puppet is operated by inserting a hand inside the body to control its head and movements.

Hand puppet of a mouse bride. Hands and feet are made of cast resin, head has an internal wooden cone, covered in cast resin. All components are painted. Head and hands are light brown. Dark brown lines painted across face and neck, imitating fur. She has black eyes, red nostrils, a red smiling mouth, and two large front teeth. Her short ears are triangular. She has black hair, carved in relief across her head, that extends into long strands of string hair at the base of her neck. Puppet is wearing a layered, lace-like veil with floral embroidery along the bottom edge. Veil is secured around her ears and forehead with a beaded headpiece. Red and pink flowers across top of headpiece. She is wearing a white dress, with two long slits up the sides. Top of dress is covered in floral embroidery, with silver-coloured highlights, and skirt is plain. Cuffs and bottom edge of dress are trimmed with bands of scalloped, lace-like material. She has a wide, pink belt around her waist, tied at the back. Underneath her wedding dress, she is wearing silk-like pants and dark purple shoes, that curve upward at the toe. Bouquet of red, pink and purple flowers in her right hand. Puppet is operated by inserting a hand inside the body to control its head and movements.

Egungun costume. One-piece mask and costume; the cloth mask, with a circular frame, is made of black velvet-like material. Metallic, silver scalloped ribbons decorate the sides and back. The front of the mask is made of a cowrie shell embroidered mesh panel, with wide gaps between the rows where the eyes would be. In the centre of the mesh panel is a hanging strand of cowrie shells and painted beads, with a small bell at the end. Strand secured to panel with plant fibre. A small red, stuffed ball is attached to the bottom centre of the panel. Along the forehead of the mask, above the cowrie shells, is a wide curvilinear motif done in sequins and beads. Fabric covered square board is stitched to the top of the mask. It has a central floral motif and short brown fringe along its edges. Heavily beaded panels hang from all sides of the board- three on the front and each side, one along the back. Panels depict curvilinear, geometric and animal motifs in sequins and beads. Back panel has “AYÏBAMA” written across it. All are lined with orange cotton. Bottom of mask has a frilled collar. Collar made of dark green velvet-like material with metallic gold ribbons, red trim and thick white and red fringe. Underneath the collar, attached to the front and back of the mask, are two weighted bags. Extending from the bags are three layers of long lappets. The top layer is covered entirely in sequins and beads. The designs are geometric, animal and curvilinear. The second and third layers are made of velvet-like material and have geometric, linear and curvilinear motifs. All beaded lappets are trimmed with metallic red zigzag ribbons. First layer of velvet-like lappets are trimmed with silver zigzag ribbons, second layer trimmed with gold zigzag ribbons. All lappets are lined with machine-printed cotton that have frog designs across them. Underneath all of the lappets is a plain red cloth, trimmed with a black zigzag ribbon.

Male and female doll attached to a wooden stand. Dolls are made of stuffed white cloth and have painted facial features. Both have black and grey eyes, with white highlights, and thick eyelashes. The female doll has additional pink highlights in her eyes. Both have rosy cheeks and dark brown eyebrows. His eyebrows are thick, hers are curved. Their lips are full and coloured light pink. He has closely cropped hair, with a middle part. Her hair is pulled into a low braid, that hangs down her back, and is secured with a long red tie. The male doll is wearing a light pink jacket, with a matching outer neck facing and a cream inner neck facing. The jacket is tied shut with a large pink ribbon. Overtop he is wearing an open, dark purple vest, with beads along the left side of the opening. He is wearing loose pants, that match his jacket, and black shoes. All of his clothing components are covered in floral embroidery. Done in light pink and dark purple. On his back, the male doll is wearing a bell-shaped, carrying basket for wood. It has braided, plant fibre straps attached to a wooden frame, that rests against his back. The basket, tied to the frame with wire, is woven from white twist ties. His right arm is bent at the elbow and extending outward, palm facing inward. His left arm is wrapped around the shoulders of the female doll. She is wearing a short yellow jacket, with a dark purple outer neck facing and a light pink inner neck facing. The sleeves of her jacket are covered in horizontal bands. Stripes done in white, lavender, pink, teal, red and yellow. The jacket is tied shut with a dark purple ribbon. Underneath, she is wearing a dark purple dress with a wrap skirt. Around her waist, she is wearing a white, gauze-like apron, for holding flowers. Her right arm is holding the bottom corner of the apron, lifting it away from her body. Her left arm is bent at the elbow, with her hand in front of her chest, palm facing inward. Both dolls have their heads turned toward one another, their bodies facing forward. Wooden stand is painted black and has paper labels attached to the base.

Animal puppet head on a wooden pole. Head and mobile lower jaw are made of wood, curved ears are made of metal. The oval-shaped eyes, screwed onto either side of the face, are made of wood. The head and upper section of the pole, imitating a neck, have different coloured fur nailed to them. The face and lower jaw are white-grey, the ears are brown-red, and the neck is light brown-orange. Dark brown fur runs down the back of the neck and down the centre of the face. The muzzle of the rusa is painted grey-purple with black nostrils. The wooden eyes are painted black, with the centre front done in white. The mouth is lined with red leather, with a long, matching tongue sticking out from the lower jaw. The mobile lower jaw is operated with a green, plastic string. The string is threaded through both the upper and lower jaw, and then passes down the back and front of the pole. The string has a black handle at the end. Jaw joint consists of a metal hinge and white cloth bands.

Day of the Dead figure. Figure depicts a skeletal market vendor. The skeleton is standing in front of a table and holding out a tortilla in its right hand. On the left side of the table, two tortillas are being cooked on an orange plate. On the right side, a pile of meal sits on top of a grey slab with a rolling pin- a grinding tool known as a metatl. The skeleton's clothes are painted on, and consist of a yellow dress and black shoes. The skeleton is wearing gold hoop earrings, and its black hair is decorated with red glitter. The table and skeleton are both affixed to an irregular-shaped blue and white base. The table's legs are made from thin metal rods.

Day of the Dead figure. Figure depicts a skeletal market vendor. The skeleton is standing in front of a table and holding out a chicken in both hands. Three chickens lie diagonally on the table. The skeleton's clothes are painted on, and consist of a blue dress, short white apron, and black shoes. The skeleton is wearing gold hoop earrings, and its black hair is decorated with red glitter. The table and skeleton are both affixed to an irregular-shaped green and white base. The table's legs are made from thin metal rods.

Day of the Dead figure. Figure depicts a skeletal market vendor. The skeleton is standing in front of a table and holding out a cup filled with a white-coloured food item its right hand. A cylindrical container and irregularly-shaped grey block sit on the table. The skeleton's clothes are painted on, and consist of a green dress, short white apron, and black shoes. The skeleton is wearing gold hoop earrings, and its black hair is decorated with red glitter. The table and skeleton are both affixed to an irregular-shaped red and white base. The table's legs are made from thin metal rods.