Lahu

Tea

烤茶 kǎochá — a clay pot is heated over charcoal, dry leaf is added and shaken until it smells roasted, then boiling water is poured in; the first cup goes to the guest. Plus 竹筒茶

Growth on the crown

A fire-swollen pod: leaf puffed by heat into a bubbled cocoon, its surface covered in small blisters, with one side split open to show a pale interior. Not a curl and not a bud — a distinctly swollen shape, as the leaf emerges from the scorching pot

Headwear

A narrow black band wrapped around the skull in a single layer with a slot, and ONE very long end hanging down the back to the heels, finished with a tassel. At 6 mm contour — a small smooth head and one narrow vertical ribbon running the full height: mass flows downward, not outward, which no other figure has. Differs from the Bayczi headwrap in the number of ends (one versus two) and length (full height versus 14 mm).

Clothing

A long black robe with side slits, a narrow red-and-white appliqué in two stripes along the collar and wrap line, a row of small silver dome buttons down the chest, cloth leg wraps. In hand, tongs and a glowing clay pot

Palette

Black in three tones, red-and-white appliqué as two threads, silver dots for buttons, ochre charcoal on the pot. No green goes on the headwear — the band and end are black

Why this is not a caricature

Only one everyday thing of the Lahu is used: a black robe with appliqué, without ceremonial silver breastplates. The custom is shown through work — the figure holds the pot with tongs rather than smiling in costume, which removes the “people in dress” register. No ritual objects and nothing from the cultic sphere. The order of serving the first cup to the guest is described on the card in native terms and without claims about the drink’s properties. The people are named as bearers of the pot-roasting custom, the collection unit remains the custom, and the character’s name means nothing in any language