Tibetan Protector Diety Mask - Senge Dradog Fusion?

Tibetan Buddhism has a complex array of protector deities. One category of such beings are the wrathful dieties. These awesome, frightening looking images are not personifications of evil or demonic forces, rather they represent forms of englightened beings who have dedicated themselves to help protect and enlighten sentient beings.

One of the main classes of wrathful deities are known as dharmapalas, sanskrit for "defender of the dharma". Icons of the dharmapalas are commonly found adorning the walls of Budhhist monasteries to impart their protective powers.

These stunning masks are hand-carved in wood and hand-painted by Tibetan artisans who have been forced to flee their homeland and relocate in Nepal due to pressure from the Chinese government and military.

This awe-inspiring carved mask seems to be some sort of fusion of one of the 8 manifestations of the guru Pahdmasambhava known as Senge Dradog or "the lion roaring guru" and iconography common to some of the other forms of wrathful deities. The ferocious fanged face has three large, bulbous eyes, and the head is banded with 3 skulls. One of the more unusual carved masks we've come across. Dimensions: 11" x 18" x 9".

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