Kanohi Mask of Psychometry

The KanohiKanohiMasks that grant powers and sustain life, they're the most vital artifact in the Matoran Universe. Mask of Psychometry is a Great KanohiGreat KanohiThe most common mask type worn by Toa and other powerful beings, forged from the highest-grade Kanoka discs. that lets its wearer learn about an object's past by touching it. Its only wearer in the story is Toa HelryxHelryx: the first Toa ever createdHelryx was the first Toa ever made, commissioned by the Great Beings on Artakha long before the Toa Mata. She founded and led the Order of Mata Nui., leader of the Order of Mata NuiThe Order of Mata NuiThe covert organization founded by Helryx to serve the Great Spirit directly, operating in concealment from a fortress on Daxia and waging the open war against the Brotherhood of Makuta that decided the fate of the universe., who uses it in the Destiny WarThe Destiny WarThe open war between the Order of Mata Nui and the Brotherhood of Makuta, told in the 2008 Destiny War podcast, which ended with the Brotherhood's assault on Metru Nui broken and the Great Spirit apparently awake. serial. (Destiny War)

Function#

In the story, the mask works through contact. When HelryxHelryx: the first Toa ever createdHelryx was the first Toa ever made, commissioned by the Great Beings on Artakha long before the Toa Mata. She founded and led the Order of Mata Nui. touches an object, she sees scenes from its past, and by concentrating she can draw out more, such as where those scenes took place. (Destiny War)

Writer Greg Farshtey added the limits in later answers: the wearer has no real control over how much information comes through, the power works on only one object at a time, and it does not work on living beings. He also said it would work on the armour of Spherus Magna's inhabitants. These are the writer's comments rather than story events. (Writer's later comment, not a published story)

Helryx#

HelryxHelryx: the first Toa ever createdHelryx was the first Toa ever made, commissioned by the Great Beings on Artakha long before the Toa Mata. She founded and led the Order of Mata Nui. is the Toa of WaterToa of WaterToa of Water were rare heroes who commanded water power, typically selected from the Ga-Matoran people. who leads the Order of Mata NuiThe Order of Mata NuiThe covert organization founded by Helryx to serve the Great Spirit directly, operating in concealment from a fortress on Daxia and waging the open war against the Brotherhood of Makuta that decided the fate of the universe., the secret organisation working against the Brotherhood of MakutaThe Brotherhood of MakutaAn organization of Makuta created by Mata Nui to build Rahi and keep order in his universe, later seized by Teridax and turned into the instrument of the Plan that overthrew the Great Spirit.. For the head of a group like that, a mask that pulls history out of whatever lands on her desk is an obvious asset. (Destiny War)

The mask itself began as a fan's winning contest design, which Farshtey approved as Helryx's Kanohi. (Writer's later comment, not a published story)

Use in the Destiny War#

During the Destiny WarThe Destiny WarThe open war between the Order of Mata Nui and the Brotherhood of Makuta, told in the 2008 Destiny War podcast, which ended with the Brotherhood's assault on Metru Nui broken and the Great Spirit apparently awake., HelryxHelryx: the first Toa ever createdHelryx was the first Toa ever made, commissioned by the Great Beings on Artakha long before the Toa Mata. She founded and led the Order of Mata Nui. used the Mask of Psychometry on fragments of RahkshiBionicle Rahkshi: the Sons of Makuta from Mask of LightRahkshi are armoured hunters made from kraata, the slug-like creatures of the Makuta. Six of them chased the Mask of Light across Mata Nui in 2003. Here's what they are, the different kinds and where they turn up in the films, books and comics. armour to trace where they had come from. She saw a place she did not recognise: Makuta ChiroxChiroxA Makuta of the Brotherhood who questioned Teridax's plans before being sent to Karda Nui. standing by a silvery pool, and a figure emerging from it, a being actually made of Energized ProtodermisEnergized ProtodermisA sentient substance that could remake or annihilate any being that touched it. One of the Matoran Universe's most lethal hazards.. Concentrating hard, she learned where it was, an island just north of the one her newest ally, KeetonguKeetonguThe legendary Rahi who broke the Visorak siege and lived to prove he was worth the legend., came from. (Destiny War)

That turned a handful of broken armour into a location the Order of Mata NuiThe Order of Mata NuiThe covert organization founded by Helryx to serve the Great Spirit directly, operating in concealment from a fortress on Daxia and waging the open war against the Brotherhood of Makuta that decided the fate of the universe. could act on. (Destiny War)

Limitations in practice#

If the writer's rules hold, the mask is less use against the Brotherhood's main assets than it first seems. It can't read a MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate. or any other living being directly, only the gear they carry or leave behind, and each scan ties the wearer to one object. (Writer's later comment, not a published story)

Status of the KanohiKanohiMasks that grant powers and sustain life, they're the most vital artifact in the Matoran Universe.#

No second Mask of Psychometry is recorded. HelryxHelryx: the first Toa ever createdHelryx was the first Toa ever made, commissioned by the Great Beings on Artakha long before the Toa Mata. She founded and led the Order of Mata Nui. is the only character shown wearing one, and the Destiny War scene is its only use in the story. (Destiny War)