Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post - How old is the Kora, and from where does it origin?

dennee · 11th May 2009, 02:47 AM

I'd love to see any good attributions of koras to Tibet. There were certainly examples found there, whether or not any originated there. There are some early to mid-twentieth-century photos of religious dancers with koras, and these koras are narrow, generally with a very convex end, unlike Nepalese examples, but they could have been modified.

I haven't seen koras in other period photos or paintings from Tibet or in monasteries, but I have seen talwars, 'katars,' Indian shields, etc. Weapons made their way into Tibet in any number of ways, and many were donated to the protector chapels in monasteries. Koras may have been attractive for ceremonial use because of their exotic appearance and origins.

11th May 2009, 02:47 AM	#14
dennee Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: College Park, MD Posts: 186	I'd love to see any good attributions of koras to Tibet. There were certainly examples found there, whether or not any originated there. There are some early to mid-twentieth-century photos of religious dancers with koras, and these koras are narrow, generally with a very convex end, unlike Nepalese examples, but they could have been modified. I haven't seen koras in other period photos or paintings from Tibet or in monasteries, but I have seen talwars, 'katars,' Indian shields, etc. Weapons made their way into Tibet in any number of ways, and many were donated to the protector chapels in monasteries. Koras may have been attractive for ceremonial use because of their exotic appearance and origins.