2000.407 Initiation Crown

Crowns or headdresses, like this example, are used in Tibetan Buddhist rituals. They are worn by young men during initiation ceremonies when they are accepted as monks in a Tibetan monastery, or during ritual chanting or monastic ritual dances. The crown has five Buddha figures, representing the teaching of meditation practices. Each of the  figures has achieved enlightenment (passing beyond the wheel of life, death, and rebirth) but still  helps people in understanding the teachings of the Buddha.

Tantrism: AAT: 300143658

Tibet: TGN: 7001319

leather: AAT: 300011845

eighteenth century: AAT: 300404512

nineteenth century (dates CE): AAT: 300404513

Buddhism: AAT: 300073738

crowns (headdresses): AAT: 300046020

dance (discipline): AAT: 300054144

deaths: AAT: 300151836

gilt: AAT: 300379350

initiations (rites of passage): AAT: 300069180

rites of passage: AAT: 300247989

ritual (events): AAT: 300065284

sacred objects: AAT: 300234190

skull (skeleton component): AAT: 300191856

Tantrism: AAT: 300143658

By 2000: Moke Mokotoff, Asian Arts, New York [1] 

2000: Dallas Museum of Art, gift of David T. Owsley via the Alconda-Owsley Foundation 

The main source for this provenance is the Committee on Collections Record, dated December 22, 2000, copy in Dallas Museum of Art Collections Records object file. 

[1] See the letter from Moke Mokotoff of Asian Arts to Anne Bromberg of the Dallas Museum of Art, sent October 11, 2000.

Apply to objects where number equals 2000.407