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Masks from Indonesia have been worn in performances in a number of contexts. In Java, masked drama occurred in the royal courts as well as in the countryside. In Bali masks are still a feature of daily life in connection with performances in temples and at life cycle ceremonies. Balinese masks relate to a range of genres. In Kalimantan masks are mostly used in rituals connected with rice-growing. Indonesian masks in the Náprstek Museum collections all come from one of these contexts, most having been used and later discarded, while some were made especially for the tourist market.

This article gives an overview of material from Burma/Myanmar in the collections of the Náprstek Museum, with a focus on three types: lacquerware, silverware, and embroidery. Examples from the collection are linked by their use of narrative scenes as devices to embellish the surfaces, especially scenes from the life of the Buddha and scenes from the stories of his previous lives. Historical scenes are often depicted on lacquerware from Bagan. Techniques employed to decorate the objects are very much the same today as they were when the majority of the items discussed were made, that is in the 19th century.