Kalachakra Dance Mask In Repoussé Gilt Copper, Tibet, 18th Century

The copper is pushed extremely finely, worked in such a way to emphasize the eyebrows and the perimeter of the mouth with flamed rinceaux.

The mask is surmounted by the third eye.

Height of a face: 22.5 cm

Masks of this type were worn by the llamas, fixed on their headdresses when they practiced ritual dances during the initiations of Kalachakra. The form is limited to the essential lines, producing a striking effect during the ritual. To be compared with another example published in G. Béguin, Gods and demons of the Himalayas, 1977, cat. n°329, ill. p. 265, as well as with two other golden examples reproduced in R. Thurman and D. Weldon, Sacred Symbols, The Ritual Art of Tibet, 1999, cat. n°40 and 41.