Material: Wood, brass or bronze, paint
Style: Tibet
Size: Length 32.5 cm, Width 7.5 cm, Depth 1 cm
Order Number: MHSATPB1

Wood panels containing detailed drawings of deities used to hold sacred Tibetan prayers and texts. The top part has five applied brass or bronze figures of the Buddha,

Mid 20th century.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Antique Tibetan Prayer Book appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bone
Style: Tanimbar Islands, Indonesia
Size: Height 18 cm, Width 29 cm
Order Number: MHST1

The Tanimbar Islands are located in the South Moluccas and comprise over 60 islands which are 135 miles long and 70 miles wide.

They depend on boats as their main transport.

Noble families create glorious stylised ancestor altars to deified and recent ancestors. The truncated, hourglass, inscribed body has wide outstretched arms in the shape of a curved boat.  The ears have hanging earrings. At the edges are curling finials of radiating hooks. These honour the founding ancestors and are adorned with jewelry.

The larger ones, more than a metre and a half in height, support the central beam of the house. This is the centre of the house where children sleep. The ancestors determine men’s hunting and women’s fertility. Family heirlooms also include skulls, bones and wooden effigies.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Tanimbar Altar 1 (Tavu) appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bone
Style: Tanimbar Islands, Indonesia
Size: Height 25 cm, Width 25 cm
Order Number: MHST2

The Tanimbar Islands are located in the South Moluccas and comprise over 60 islands which are 135 miles long and 70 miles wide.

They depend on boats as their main transport.

Noble families create glorious stylised ancestor altars to deified and recent ancestors. The truncated, hourglass, inscribed body has wide outstretched arms in the shape of a curved boat.  The ears have hanging earrings. At the edges are curling finials of radiating hooks. These honour the founding ancestors and are adorned with jewelry.

The larger ones, more than a metre and a half in height, support the central beam of the house. This is the centre of the house where children sleep. The ancestors determine men’s hunting and women’s fertility. Family heirlooms also include skulls, bones and wooden effigies.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Tanimbar Altar 2 (Tavu) appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Silver
Style: Tibet
Size: Height 8.5 cm, Width 7 cm, Depth 4 cm
Order Number: MHSTHBGGPBS1

Tibetans carry a Gau Ghau Prayer Box as a portable shrine in a cloth case. This one can be attached to the waist. These portable shrines were made to contain a small image of the Buddha when travelling. They can also contain written prayers, miniature paintings, relics or special amulets, and medicinal herbs that are designed to protect the individual from evil spirits when travelling.

The shrine which holds the image of the Buddha is made of silver decorated with repoussé work and placed in a woven bag.

Repousée is a metalworking technique in which a malleable metal is shaped by hammering from the reverse side to create a design in low relief.

In a Tibetan home, when they are not travelling, a Gau Ghau is kept on the family altar. They are worn by men, women and children, monks and laymen, and come in various shapes and sizes. Depending on the size, they may be worn around the neck, across the chest or attached to the waist. Many travellers wear 4 to 12 of them for dangerous journeys, and would set them up as an altar when travelling.

Gau Ghaus are only found in Tibet or places influenced by Tibetan Buddhism, for example Bhutan. No other Buddhist countries have anything like them.

In a rare one, such as this, the cord, complete with ornamental beads, and casing, is still attached.

There are some examples in Four Centuries of Silver, Personal Adornment in the Qing Dynasty and After, Margaret Duda, Times Editions, 2002, page 108.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Tibetan Healing Buddha Gau Ghau Prayer Box Shrine 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Silver
Style: Tibet
Size: Height 11 cm, Width 8 cm, Depth 4.15 cm
Order Number: MHSTHBGGPBS2

Tibetans carry a Gau Ghau Prayer Box as a portable shrine in a cloth case. This one can be attached to the waist. These portable shrines were made to contain a small image of the Buddha when travelling. They can also contain written prayers, miniature paintings, relics or special amulets, and medicinal herbs that are designed to protect the individual from evil spirits when travelling.

The shrine which holds the image of the Buddha is made of silver decorated with repoussé work and placed in a woven bag.

Repousée is a metalworking technique in which a malleable metal is shaped by hammering from the reverse side to create a design in low relief.

In a Tibetan home, when they are not travelling, a Gau Ghau is kept on the family altar. They are worn by men, women and children, monks and laymen, and come in various shapes and sizes. Depending on the size, they may be worn around the neck, across the chest or attached to the waist. Many travellers wear 4 to 12 of them for dangerous journeys, and would set them up as an altar when travelling.

Gau Ghaus are only found in Tibet or places influenced by Tibetan Buddhism, for example Bhutan. No other Buddhist countries have anything like them.

In a rare one, such as this, the casing is still attached.

There are some examples in Four Centuries of Silver, Personal Adornment in the Qing Dynasty and After, Margaret Duda, Times Editions, 2002, page 108.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Tibetan Healing Buddha Gau Ghau Prayer Box Shrine 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.