"a human or divine visage"
This mask is elegant, expressive, and completely enchanting. Every time I look at it I wonder who wore it, who made it, and what effect it had on the battlefield.
"This exceptionally rare war mask is one of only two known examples from Tibet. It is subtly forged in iron to represent a human or divine visage, boldly damascened in gold with flame-like tendrils for eyebrows, around the mouth, and framing the face. By contrast, the second example, although equally rare and important...is intentionally plain in its design and virtually without decoration."
More:
- Here's the second war mask, if you're interested.
- And here's an explanation of "damascening": Metalworking at Tiffany & Co.: Damascening.
How a Bit of Awe Can Improve Your Health
By Hope Reese. New York Times (gift article).
I’ve always understood awe to be something hugely powerful and overwhelming, something that you found only occasionally—if you were lucky. But it appears that awe, like creativity, can be courted, and in some of the same ways:
“witnessing the goodness of others,” “meditating, reflecting,” and “gravitating toward the unexpected can set us up to experience awe. Some people do this more than others, a personality trait that experts have called an “openness to experience.”
VIDEO: How Upside-Down Models Revolutionized Architecture
By Stewart Hicks.
This video explores the history of the "hanging chain" model, first introduced by Robert Hook, "one of the leading scientists and architects of Restoration England," to help his childhood friend, the architect Christopher Wren, construct a building with a dome larger than traditional building methods of the time would allow.
It also helped me better appreciate the epic history of the Sagrada Familia.