In becoming an idol, one creates a new self, which means a false self. This false self can be idolised precisely because it is unreal. But this unreality is then made real by the idolatry. Or rather, it ceases to matter whether the idolised was ever real in the first place, as they are beyond real, hyperreal.

Death masks are an exercise in hyperreality and an illustration of idolatry. The most famous death mask is that of King Tutankhamun, who was only a little boy.

Worship is an exercise of falseness. That goes for anywhere, any time.