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Thomas Murray Asiatica Ethnographica

Red Mahakala
Tibet, Papier-mâché
18th/19th Century
Provenance Mort Golub
Published: Arts of Asia Vol 29 No. 2 1999 Masks of the Himalayas, M. Golub
Masks of Fabled Lands, 2009 plate 65 13.5 in/34.5 cm

There are many manifestations of Mahakala of which face color is only one consideration in identifying which form he has taken. Who we are encountering also depends on how many arms and what ritual implements are held in each of his (many) hands, and who or what he is standing on, something we cannot know by just looking at the mask.

all text, images © Thomas Murray Asiatica Ethnographica

 

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