Plaster cast model head of Peter Cushing

Plaster cast model of Peter Cushing's head made by Roy Ashton for Hammer Films, bearing a number of colour marks, probably caused by the application and removal of various make-up materials and prosthetics.

Roy Ashton (1909–95) and Phil Leakey (1908–92) were master make-up artists who worked on many of the British cult horror films of the mid-20th century. A trained artist, Australia-born Ashton began his career at Gaumont-British Film Corporation in 1932 as a means of supplementing his passion for opera singing. In 1955, Ashton became the assistant to Hammer Films’ Phil Leakey, the first makeup artist to receive on-screen credit for ‘Special Make-up Effects’. Following Leakey’s departure from Hammer in 1958, Ashton took over as head makeup artist, where he continued his expert work throughout the 1960s and 1970s.

This life mask was cast to assist the make-up artists with their make-up tests and prosthetic construction. Cushing was a regular in Hammer horror films, appearing in twenty-two titles beginning in 1957 with 'The Curse of Frankenstein'.