Ira+Hayes

Ira Hayes was captured in a famous battle photograph, a picture of Marines raising the flag over Iwo Jima. Now, it turns out that Hayes' image also was captured in a secretly made death mask. Hayes, a Pima Indian, was depicted in books, music, and film. The death mask was only recently discovered by the Hayes' family.

Kenneth Hayes, 78, received his brother's mask from the Gilbert Ortega Museum Gallery in Scottsdale, where the mask had been on display for years. Family members buried the mask on the Gila River Reservation where Hayes lived. The death mask itself represents something of a mystery, from its unauthorized creation to its public display.

The 1945 picture of Hayes, transformed a troubled Indian kid into an unwilling celebrity. After the battle, President Harry Truman made him a hero and ordered him to join a tour raising money through the sale of war bonds.

Ira hated being the center of attention and considered his fallen comrades to be the true heroes. Hayes returned to his home in the Gila River Indian Community, seeking comfort in drinking. Despite Hayes' misgivings, a mountain, a school and an American Legion post were named for him.

Ten years after the war, Hayes' body was found lying in a creek. He had died after getting into a drunken fight. Hayes was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. But only a few people knew what happened the night before the burial.

In the Gilbert Ortega Museum Gallery in Scottsdale, Larry Cook, Ira Hayes' nephew, unwraps a package to reveal the death mask. Cook's wife, Sharon, says that "In Pima culture, when you pass on, everything you own is supposed to go with you. They say because of this Ira's body was never sent to rest. It's still lingering." An artist named Hortense Johnson went to the funeral parlor and made a cast of Hayes' face. It was her intent to make a bust of Ira. Johnson died without making a sculpture.

Around 1995, the mask was taken to Gilbert Ortega Sr. and he put it in his gallery. Gilbert Ortega Sr. died six years ago. His son turned the mask over to the family.