Tsam, mystic dance

Tsam is a Buddhist dance that arrived in Mongolia in the 17-18th century. There, it took elements from Mongolian art and culture. There are many different types of tsam dances, performed for different occasions and that have different meanings. Tsam dance ceremonies continued taking place till the 1930s.





Learn the meaning of tsam masks. Some info about the tsam instruments

This is a mask made in the 19th century by the great artist Puntsag-Osor, it was made using the papier-mache technique and has 7881 coral beads. Taken from this documentary (in Mongolian). It has some really great footage showing the dance ceremony.