The pesky "flesh on neck" debate.

[The_Demon_Bishop]

Is it rotting at the front with people taking the mask off? Grabbing it with their fingers putting/pulling it on and off?

[Davy_Krueger]

3: While there is rot on several areas of the mask, the most extensively rotted part is the neck area. Not necessarily the back or the sides, but rather exactly where the mask would’ve had the repaint. You can even see that area rotting the worst in the '96 Sean Clark video, almost as if the paint possibly accelerated the rot in that area.

Though I am of the same opinion that there was likely a repaint (the extreme lack flesh tones, regardless of the white balance, is indicative of this), I feel like the fact that the neck rotted in the exact spot where the paint had been rubbed away the strongest on set, which exposed the flesh tones in the first place, is more indicative that frequent rough handling of the mask in this specific area led to the rot more than a botched repaint job. That said, and this is purely speculative, but it may simply have been that BECAUSE the neck rotted in this spot, even after the repair job, that those who were involved with said repair job may have mistaken the repairs for the cause of the rot, and not for the simple fact that this specific mask had a rough time for a good amount of its life including rough handling on two film productions, being stored in a popcorn tin, and (and this is in no way a hit against Mr. Warlock, most actors are not versed in archival preservation) likely improper display of the mask itself for years prior to its sale to Mark Roberts.

[MMnetuser25]

Personally I fully support the idea that flesh was always present on the neck but I think in the very beginning the neck was almost totally white with only a few flesh splotches but as filming went on flesh popped up on the middle of the neck and back of the neck. In my opinion the perfect h1 is mostly white with a nice strip of flesh down the middle of the neck.

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[TheGhostlyShape]

Personally I fully support the idea that flesh was always present on the neck but I think in the very beginning the neck was almost totally white with only a few flesh splotches but as filming went on flesh popped up on the middle of the neck and back of the neck. In my opinion the perfect h1 is mostly white with a nice strip of flesh down the middle of the neck.

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Beautiful mask! This is my ideal H1 look as well and I love the way your mask pulls it off.

Though I am of the same opinion that there was likely a repaint (the extreme lack flesh tones, regardless of the white balance, is indicative of this), I feel like the fact that the neck rotted in the exact spot where the paint had been rubbed away the strongest on set, which exposed the flesh tones in the first place, is more indicative that frequent rough handling of the mask in this specific area led to the rot more than a botched repaint job. That said, and this is purely speculative, but it may simply have been that BECAUSE the neck rotted in this spot, even after the repair job, that those who were involved with said repair job may have mistaken the repairs for the cause of the rot, and not for the simple fact that this specific mask had a rough time for a good amount of its life including rough handling on two film productions, being stored in a popcorn tin, and (and this is in no way a hit against Mr. Warlock, most actors are not versed in archival preservation) likely improper display of the mask itself for years prior to its sale to Mark Roberts.

I would say though I’m honestly not sure the mask ever had white on that portion of the neck. There really isn’t any proof of it ever being all white, and I can’t really find an area where the flesh tones changed in any shot from H1 (BTS or otherwise), or in the years between, or during H2. Even the earliest shots we see of the mask in H1 has flesh and all three masks are painted in that same way with flesh showing on almost all of the same low areas. The pattern stays the same across it all which makes me think it really isn’t that easily rubbed off, but it all has to do with the way it was painted at a downward angle (as demonstrated by Novnov and themaskgallery earlier in the thread.

Oh yeah! I hope it didn’t come across too matter of fact, I was just speculating that and throwing it out as a possibility is all and that it was interesting that it rotted to that same area and seemingly not further on the neck. But it most definitely could also be from being pulled on that area too. No doubt the improper storage was probably a factor in the rotting in general, but time would’ve done that anyway I suppose