File:Tibetan Female Headdress in Kham Derge Mesho 6.jpg

English: It has been said that there are over a thousand styles and types of Tibetan Traditional headdresses that are worn by Tibetans distributed throughout Tibet Autonomous Region, Qinghai, Ganzisu, Yunnan, and Sichuan Province. The Tibetan headdresses vary with different regions, ages, and by marital status. Mesho is a small valley located in Dege County, Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province. Mesho also known as Dzongsar, and it has a population of little over 6 thousand, with a agro-pastoralists focus. There are 21 villages in three townships that spread in the valley beside the river.

The headdress in Mesho is one of the most traditional and original headdresses of the Dege Kingdom. The headdress in the Kham Dege area is usually known as Yumgo, which means “turquoise head” in Tibetan. Tibetan ladies in Dege use many turquoise gems for the head ornaments. Even in Dege there are some significant differences between the regions. In Mesho, ladies wear a round amber on the forehead, which is the major feature, along with other small details that are also specific to Mesho Valley. The remoteness of the valley safeguards local Tibetan tradition very well. To this day, most of the locals still wear traditional dresses for most of the local social activities such as a summer picnic, the Tibetan New Year, weddings, and other community activities. As a villager who was born and grow up in Mesho I was lucky to be able to research and document the process headdress in my community during our annual Summer Festival in 2015. MFH 6

A strip with precious ornaments, such as coral, turquoise, and amber are attached on the pad across the head. Jewelry the family saving that is equivalent to bank savings to villagers in remote communities such as Mesho. A family also passes this jewelry as family wealth to future generations. Unless critical situations arise, jewelry is not sold for cash.