Tibetan Ritual Silver & Gilt Five Skull Oracle's Crown. Adorned with turquoise and coral cabochons. The silverwork is richly tooled and the interior of the crown is fitted with a textile-covered cushioning. Crowns such as these were worn by Tibetan oracles when performing trances. Figures of bodhisattvas in their wrathful form also often are depicted wearing this type of five-skull headdress, with each skull representing one of the five "wisdom" buddhas, the so- called Five Dhyani Buddhas. Similar crowns also were used in Mongolia. Earlier examples include lot 127 in Sotheby’s New York, ‘Indian & Southeast Asian Art’, March 24, 2004; and Sotheby’s New York, ‘Indian, Himalayan, Southeast Asian Art and Indian Miniatures’, September 20, 1985. Size: 6.5'' x 8'' x 6'' (17 x 20 x 15 cm).

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