The gold damascened decoration of this distinctively Mongol-style helmet features six large ovals containing Yamantaka, literally “slayer of the lord of death,” and five female deities called dakinis. In between them are twelve protective bija, or seed syllables, flanked by Tibetan inscriptions identifying the protective attributes of each one. The brow of the helmet is encircled by a series of mantras, including invocations to Yamataka and the dakinis. In the center of the brow is the All-Powerful Ten, a monogram of the ten Sanskrit syllables of the Kalachakra mantra. Next to it is a chorten, a stylized reliquary that represents the mind of enlightenment.

Detail: close up