Warrior's ceremonial headdress ·  India, Naga · ID: 3035723

Description

conical bonnet from fine plant fibre netting, dyed in red, with yellow orchid stems forming linear ornaments, decorated with animal hair and two boar tusks, min. dam., slight traces of usage;
written sources reveal that before the Pax Britannica the Nagas used heavy
war helmets made of bamboo which actually functioned as a means of defence. The English later discouraged the incessant tribal feuds which led to the substitution of these heavy helmets with lighter ones like the present one. These headdresses, whose sole objective is to convey the idea of combat readiness and pride in warfare, are worn only on ceremonial occasions.

The object Warrior’s ceremonial headdress with the object ID 3035723 was last part of the auction 76th tribal art auction at March 22, 2014 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house and had the lot number 20.

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Publications

Christina Fessler, Scrapbuch Nagaland, Konstanz 2008, p. 63