Comments on: The red-faced men III: The red-faced women http://earlytibet.com/2007/10/05/red-faced-men-iii/ Notes, thoughts and fragments of research on the history of Tibet Fri, 23 Jul 2010 14:21:15 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: earlytibet http://earlytibet.com/2007/10/05/red-faced-men-iii/#comment-77 earlytibet Sun, 07 Oct 2007 13:07:40 +0000 http://earlytibet.com/2007/10/05/red-faced-men-iii/#comment-77 Thanks. What a performance! I did enjoy that. Well, it seems news has yet to reach these Tibetans that 'the red-faced ones' are actually the Native Americans. Thanks. What a performance! I did enjoy that.

Well, it seems news has yet to reach these Tibetans that ‘the red-faced ones’ are actually the Native Americans.

]]> By: Dab http://earlytibet.com/2007/10/05/red-faced-men-iii/#comment-73 Dab Sat, 06 Oct 2007 15:16:17 +0000 http://earlytibet.com/2007/10/05/red-faced-men-iii/#comment-73 Dear Early, Somebody steered me to Youtube to see this video of what is supposed to be a wildly popular song these days in Tibet. Lucky for me it has Tibetan-letter subtitles since this helps my comprehension a lot. It is quite an upliftingly proud song about Tibet, and one line stuck out in particular given the topic of your interest: nged gangs can gdong dmar bod pa yin // "We are the Tibetans, red-faced [of the land of] snow." To see it, look here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZv67scGLjs or to give the tinyurl: http://tinyurl.com/3yeaqb Enjoy! The awareness of the ancient and wondrous red faced ones is alive and well nowadays, or so it would seem from this song. Any thoughts on this? Yours, Dab Dear Early,

Somebody steered me to Youtube to see this video of what is supposed to be a wildly popular song these days in Tibet. Lucky for me it has Tibetan-letter subtitles since this helps my comprehension a lot. It is quite an upliftingly proud song about Tibet, and one line stuck out in particular given the topic of your interest:

nged gangs can gdong dmar bod pa yin //

“We are the Tibetans, red-faced [of the land of] snow.”

To see it, look here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nZv67scGLjs

or to give the tinyurl:

http://tinyurl.com/3yeaqb

Enjoy! The awareness of the ancient and wondrous red faced ones is alive and well nowadays, or so it would seem from this song. Any thoughts on this?

Yours,
Dab

]]> By: earlytibet http://earlytibet.com/2007/10/05/red-faced-men-iii/#comment-72 earlytibet Fri, 05 Oct 2007 14:48:54 +0000 http://earlytibet.com/2007/10/05/red-faced-men-iii/#comment-72 Thanks for the references; I will have a look for them. So far I have not seen an original source for the statments that ochre or vermilion were used in decorative face painting. Perhaps it is just a scholarly supposition, another myth... I was rather surprised to discover that boiling whey could produce such a dark red colour. Perhaps there is marketing potential for 'Tibetan Rouge' after all, what with the new vogue for natural cosmetics! Thanks for the references; I will have a look for them. So far I have not seen an original source for the statments that ochre or vermilion were used in decorative face painting. Perhaps it is just a scholarly supposition, another myth…

I was rather surprised to discover that boiling whey could produce such a dark red colour. Perhaps there is marketing potential for ‘Tibetan Rouge’ after all, what with the new vogue for natural cosmetics!

]]> By: Dab http://earlytibet.com/2007/10/05/red-faced-men-iii/#comment-71 Dab Fri, 05 Oct 2007 13:54:27 +0000 http://earlytibet.com/2007/10/05/red-faced-men-iii/#comment-71 Dear Early, Dab here making a nuisance of himself again. Perhaps this little bibliography of Tibetan cosmetic practices will be fun for you to look into. I don't think I have any of these old articles on hand. Perhaps one or another has been put up on the web by now? LAUFER, BERTHOLD (1874-1934), Zur Geschichte des Schminkens in Tibet, Globus, vol. 70, no. 4 (1896) 63-65. SCHAFER, EDWARD H., The Early History of Lead Pigments and Cosmetics in China, T'oung Pao, vol. 44 (1956), pp. 413-438. UNKRIG, WILHELM ALEXANDER, Kosmetik in Tibet und der Mongolei (Ein Ausflug ins Reich asiatischer Drogen), Oriens, vol. 7 (1954), pp. 265-289. Is it true what I suspect, that all the sources that mention the substance used to redden the face are in languages other than Tibetan? For ochre, vermillion, etc., there are several Tibetan words; I just wonder which particular Tibetan word would be used in this instance. Do any of the sources that call Tibet "Country Having Red Faced [people]" ever name the substance? Or was this only a guess on the part of the foreigners? A quick schmoogle search turned up some interesting advertisements for "Tibetan Poppy" lipstick. There might be marketing possibilities for "Tibetan Rouge," too. We could keep going with this fascinating subject until we turn blue in the face. Yours, Dab Dear Early,

Dab here making a nuisance of himself again. Perhaps this little bibliography of Tibetan cosmetic practices will be fun for you to look into. I don’t think I have any of these old articles on hand. Perhaps one or another has been put up on the web by now?

LAUFER, BERTHOLD (1874-1934), Zur Geschichte des Schminkens in Tibet, Globus, vol. 70, no. 4 (1896) 63-65.

SCHAFER, EDWARD H., The Early History of Lead Pigments and Cosmetics in China, T’oung Pao, vol. 44 (1956), pp. 413-438.

UNKRIG, WILHELM ALEXANDER, Kosmetik in Tibet und der Mongolei (Ein Ausflug ins Reich asiatischer Drogen), Oriens, vol. 7 (1954), pp. 265-289.

Is it true what I suspect, that all the sources that mention the substance used to redden the face are in languages other than Tibetan? For ochre, vermillion, etc., there are several Tibetan words; I just wonder which particular Tibetan word would be used in this instance. Do any of the sources that call Tibet “Country Having Red Faced [people]” ever name the substance? Or was this only a guess on the part of the foreigners?

A quick schmoogle search turned up some interesting advertisements for “Tibetan Poppy” lipstick. There might be marketing possibilities for “Tibetan Rouge,” too. We could keep going with this fascinating subject until we turn blue in the face.

Yours,
Dab

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