Lugong Gyalpo (the Saviour King of Tibet): he takes away the ill-luck and evils of life for one year from the king and people of Tibet. On New Year's Day he is dressed in a goatskin robe with the hair outside. His face is painted half white with chalk, half black with soot or ink. He wears a conical paper cap. He has the evil eye, and his touch is maleficent. He is supposed to be the devil personified. A servant follows him and collects, in a sack, alms and presents from passers-by. On account of the weight of evil he has to bear, the Gyalpo is always short-lived. From Sarat Chandra Das, JOURNEY TO LHASA AND CENTRAL TIBET (1904) - ?TopFoto / Fortean