Sarah Kennedy Image Annotation 10

This piece shows how different cultures were brought under the Mongol umbrella, to then be spread to other locations. The Mongols were geniuses at absorbing other cultures within their empires, and this piece is a good example of that. It has the distinctive shape of Mongol helmet: in function, it is Mongol. However, it draws deeply from ancient Buddhist tradition. The writing on the helmet is in Sanskrit, which was ancient even by this point. It is also interesting to imagine what role this would have played in imperial administration. Was part of the goal to make conquered people feel at home in the emprie? Or did it serve a simpler function?

Global Medieval

`1. Would the person wearing this helmet have actually been Buddhist? Or was it more seen as sign of protection? 2. Was this helmet a direct result of Mongols traveling in Tibet, or did it occur some other way? It could have been made by a Tibetan artist in many other locations, or by someone else who had observed art in Tibet and then been brought into the Mongol empire. 3. Why is the date range on the Met's website so broad? At certain points, some Mongol rulers targeted Buddhists, but I guess that can't be used for dating in this instance? 4. What would have been the socio-economic class of the wearer of the helmet? It has gold, but I'm sure there were lots of soliders. Does that change our understanding of the religious symbols?

Questions

In our reading, Purtle notes that " Tibetans made Buddhist images that appeared unusual to a Chinese viewer" (191) but that the Yuan court purchases these images. I thought that this helmet could also be an example of that. Maybe the more "exotic" design struck the wearer as imbuing it with special power. This piece also reminded me of the mantle of Roger II and some of his other works. As Britt says "By incorporating themes and artistic trends of rule in Islam and Byzantium, he claimed the authority that these symbols represent" (34). It seems that the Mongols could have been doing something similar with this helmet and its intereligous themes. However, this helmet is not a top-down as the Capella, so it may have been a little less self-concious than Roger's very intentional image building.

Reading Connection