Ethnographic materials from the Himalayan region

April 3, 2008 4:37 PM

Apa Tani bleeding tubes filmed by Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf and Paro, Bhutan in 1936 from Frederick Williamson, are just two of the extraordinary offerings from the Digital Himalaya Project.
posted by tellurian (8 comments total)

Is this porn or youtube porn? Or is it just youtubery with extra tubes? And blood, of course.
posted by sneebler at 5:01 PM on April 3

Bleeding tubes.... What an extraordinary offering!

I mean, Jesus, there must be a better intro to the Digital Himalaya Project. But... Bleeding tubes? WT mighty F?
posted by KokuRyu at 5:13 PM on April 3

No, Robocop is bleeding.
posted by Tube at 6:00 PM on April 3

'tis a bit odd
posted by HuronBob at 6:40 PM on April 3

Yes, this might be a less off-putting intro to this very interesting collection...
posted by kozad at 10:02 PM on April 3

It seems the 'bleeding tubes' clip wasn't well received. Oh well, different strokes I guess. I found it fascinating and was looking for more information about it. I didn't have any luck though. It doesn't even get a mention in his book, The Apa Tanis and Their Neighbours: A Primitive Civilization of the Eastern Himalayas, although it covers other rituals related to the seasons and slain enemies.
posted by tellurian at 11:11 PM on April 3

After having watched it again, it occurs to me that this may not be a ritual at all and could be a medical practice, relieving pressure on knees, wrists and temples.
posted by tellurian at 11:24 PM on April 3

The bleeding tubes video had 111 views when I linked it, 1,048 now.
posted by tellurian at 12:17 AM on April 8