“Tibetan Arms and Armor From the Permanent Collection” au MET, New York

Sword” (detail) Tibetan or Chinese, from the 14th-16th century.

Tibetan or Chinese Tibetan Buddhism, represented by the peace-loving Dalai Lama, is not normally seen as a religion that advocates violence, writes Karen Rosenberg. Earlier generations of followers, however, defended the road to enlightenment with armed horsemen. Beginning in the seventh century, Tibetan Buddhists outfitted their gods as well as their warriors. In ancient Himalayan paintings, deities brandish weapons, including the “Sword of Wisdom,” in defense of religious doctrines. (Photo: Metropolitan Museum of Art)

A Tibetan bridle from the 15th-17th century.

“This paradox of militant Buddhism inspired the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s fascinating 2006 exhibition ‘Warriors of the Himalayas: Rediscovering the Arms and Armor of Tibet,’ which presented some 130 examples of military art.

In ‘Tibetan Arms and Armor From the Permanent Collection’ at the Met, the focus is on defense rather than offense: examples of horse and body armor, dating from the 15th through the 20th centuries, outnumber swords, guns and spears. Most of these objects have seen more ceremonial than military action, despite Tibet’s long history of military involvement with India, Mongolia and China. All of them equate supreme craftsmanship with defense of the body and Buddhist principles.” (Photo: Metropolitan Museum of Art)

A Mongolian helmet from the 15th-17th century.

“One helmet of Mongolian origin is so heavy with text and imagery that one imagines the wearer collapsing under the spiritual weight. Encircling the conical form are inscriptions offering protection from bad planets and stars, destructive demons, weapons, harmful ghosts and a host of other threats.” (Photo: Metropolitan Museum of Art)

A head guard, Tibetan or Mongolian, from the 15th-17th century.

“Horses were as lavishly and thoroughly equipped as soldiers, to judge from the variety and intricacy of the saddles, bridles, shaffrons (head guards) and stirrups on view. The Tibetans, in the tradition of steppe horsemen, continued to use horse armor long after it went out of fashion in the West.”

“One iron and leather damascened (decorated with gold and silver) shaffron is among the most striking objects in the arms and armor galleries. Dating from the 15th to 17th century, it is thought to have been owned by a king or high-ranking general. Delicate scrolls adorn the area above the eyeholes, which are outlined with tiny iron spheres. A long strip of textured metal extends from snout to mane, bulging into a disc in the center of the forehead.” (Photo: Metropolitan Museum of Art)

An Eastern Tibetan saddle and stirrup.

“One exceptionally well-preserved saddle appears to have been made in China for the Tibetan market, during the 17th or 18th centuries. Its original seat cover, of silk embroidered with dragons, and the form of its gold-foil pommel plate resemble features of saddles made in imperial Chinese workshops. The underside of the saddletree, however, has been branded with the Tibetan letter ’ka.’ ” (Photo: Metropolitan Museum of Art)

A war mask, Mongolian or Tibetan, from the 12th-14th century.

“The most riveting of the new acquisitions is a war mask, in iron trimmed with copper, thought to have been made sometime from the 12th to 14th century. Unlike the many surviving examples of ceremonial papier-mâché, leather and gilt copper masks, it was meant to be used in battle. Its fearsome scowl resembles the expressions of Japanese samurai masks meant to intimidate the opponent.

“Unlike most of the other peoples represented in the Metropolitan’s arms and armor galleries, Tibetans continued to wear their armor into the 20th century. As recently as the 1940s they wore traditional arms and armor at events like the Great Prayer Festival in the capital city of Lhasa. At this annual event government officials engaged in contests of skill with the spear, bow and arrow, and matchlock musket — a case of Buddhism’s war of art running parallel to the art of war.” (Photo: Metropolitan Museum of Art)

Detail of a breast defense from a horse armor, Tibetan or Mongolian, 15th to 17th century  (Photo: Metropolitan Museum of Art)

Lire l'article "In War and Peace, in Silver and Gold" de Karen Rosenberg (source www.nytimes.com)

“Tibetan Arms and Armor From the Permanent Collection” continues through the fall of 2009 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.