Nine dramatic masks from the Bolivian Andes arrived at the Wellcome Trust in October 2006. The masks will feature in the Wellcome Collection exhibition opening in summer 2007.

The nine masks were made for the Diablada (Dance of the Devils), part of the annual carnival celebration in Oruro in the Bolivian Andes. They were commissioned by ethno-musicologist Dr Henry Stobart, from highly skilled specialist mask-makers in Bolivia.

Six masks, made from plaster of Paris, come from Oruru, a large industrial mining town, which is the 'capital' of the Diablada. Traditionally, the miners made offerings to the tio (devil) in the mine to avoid accidents and to help them find rich veins of precious metals.

Based in the Wellcome Trust's former headquarters, 183 Euston Road, Wellcome Collection will be a major new visitor destination exploring the relationships between medicine, life and art in thoughtful, experimental and challenging ways.

See also

• Wellcome Collection