This cast brass ornament from a warrior’s headdress depicts a stylized crouching figure with round, hollow eyes, circular nostrils, and an open, anguished mouth. Such headdress ornaments served both as protective charms and as emblems of rank. Brassware from Brunei, China, and Malaysia provided raw materials for local metalsmiths who made such ornaments.

Excerpt from

Roslyn Adele Walker, Label text, 2013.