Catalog: Antiques: Regional Art: Asian: Indian Subcontinent (87)

Good size late 18th to early 19th century Tibetan thangka depicting Buddha Amitabha presiding over Sukhavati, the Western paradise. Amitabha - the Buddha of Infinite Light - sits in his palace surrounded by pious men dwelling in the land of bliss. There are flying Buddhist angels above the palace, and before it there is a lake in which devotees are reborn on lotus flowers with two rowing boats carrying believers to the Amitabha’s paradise...

Good size early 19th century Tibetan thangka in original mounts depicting 6-armed Bhuddist dharmapala Hayagriva easily recognizable by 3 horse heads in his crown. He is considered to be the terrific form of Avalokiteshvara and thus the archetype of fierce compassion. Hayagriva is shown wearing a tiger skin apron and a long necklace of human heads, holding various implements in his hands...

18th century Tibetan thangka in original mounts depicting Begtse standing on a lotus throne trampling on the corpses of horses and humans, brandishing a sword, supporting a lance and a bow and devouring a human heart. Rather rare icon, Beg-tse (also called Jamsaran) is a dharmapala (the Defender of the Buddhist Law) and the Lord of War, in origin a pre-Buddhist war god of the Mongols - his name means “hidden coat of mail”...

Early 18th to early 19th century Tibetan thangka in original mounts depicting Green Tara with the image of Buddha Amitabha above her and her 21 forms around her. She is the miraculous savior rescuing all beings from suffering, particularly from the “eight calamities” of both mundane and spiritual nature: 1. lions and pride 2. wild elephants and delusion 3. forest fires and hatred 4. snakes and envy 5. robbers and fanatical views 6. prisons and avarice 7. floods and lust 8. demons and doubts...

Early 19th century Tibetan thangka depicting historical Buddha Shakyamuni emanating rays of golden light, his right hand in bhumisparsha (earth-touching) mudra, his left hand holding an alms bowl. Central figure is surrounded by 18 of Buddha’s original disciples (2 of them are standing holding kakhara - long staff with rattle to scare off insects, and thus prevent the carrier from stepping on them) with additional figures of Boddhidharma and Budai...

Very rare late 18th - early 19th century framed Tibetan thangka depicting arhat Kanaka Bharadvaja - one of the 16 original disciples of the historical Buddha - seated on a lotus dais with his hands in dhyanamudra - mudra of concentration. He is surrounded by 7 other original arhat with their characteristic hand gestures and attributes (anticlockwise from lower left): Anjita, Shribhadra, Pindola, Rahula, Kalika, Nagasena and Abheda...

Early 19th century Tibetan thangka depicting Buddha Amitabha surrounded by his eight manifestations. Amitabha is the Buddha of Infinite Light and presides over Sukhavati (the Western Paradise). Beautifully painted with natural mineral pigments on cotton, wonderful tranquil face, original silk mounts, original silk gauze cloth protecting the painting from light and wear (can be seen bunched up for the purpose of photography on top of the mounts on Enlargement 2)...

18th century Tibetan thangka depicting Ekadasamukha - Boddhisattva Avalokiteshvara manifesting its form with 11 faces. Boddhisattva is holding various implements in his 6 hands, there is Tsongkhapa surrounded by 2 lamas depicted above him and 3 deities (White Tara, Mahakala and Green Tara) below. Beautifully painted with natural mineral pigments on cotton, original mounts lost its silk front but retained cotton backing, the thangka can be displayed hanging...

Very rare early 19th century Sino-Tibetan thangka depicting the unusual White manifestation of 6-armed Bhuddist dharmapala Hayagriva. His more common manifestation is Red attesting to his nature as a wrathful form of Avalokiteshvara and thus the archetype of fierce compassion. He is easily recognizable by 3 horse heads in his crown, shown wearing a tiger skin apron and a long necklace of human heads, holding various implements in his hands...

Rare 19th century Sino-Tibetan thangka depicting eight armed Goddess Maha Pratisara seated on a lotus throne and holding various weapons, with Boddhisattva Manjushri depicted above her. Pratisara is one of the Five Pancha Rakshas - a group of five female deities that are the personifications of five early Buddhist sutras...

Early 19th century Sino-Tibetan thangka depicting 6-armed Bhuddist dharmapala Hayagriva easily recognizable by 3 horse heads in his crown. He is considered to be the wrathful form of Avalokiteshvara and thus the archetype of fierce compassion. He is wearing a tiger skin apron and a long necklace of human heads, holding various implements in his hands and trampling on numerous snakes...

Early 19th century Tibetan thangka in original mounts depicting Bodhisattva Manjushri seated on a lotus throne holding a flaming sword and a lotus flower with a book on it in his hands, sun and moon among clouds behind him and a pile of offerings in front of the throne. Manjushri’s name means “Gentle Glory”, a flaming sword represents the realization of transcendent wisdom which cuts down ignorance and duality. The scripture supported by the lotus is Prajnaparamita Sutra representing his a...

18th to early 19th century Tibetan thangka in original mounts depicting six-armed Mahakala standing on a lotus base trampling on elephant headed Vigneshwara (Lord of Obstacles). Mahakala is an emanation of Boddhisattva Avalokiteshvara and the leader of the dharmapalas (Defenders of the Buddhist Law), his name means “beyond time/death”, and he represents the flow of time. This is 6-armed form of Mahakala with each hand holding a different implement, the crown is adorned with 5 skulls and a s...

Early 19th century Tibetan thangka in original mounts depicting Buddha Amitabha seated on a lotus throne holding an alms bowl in his hands, sun and moon among clouds behind him and a pile of offerings in front of the throne. Amitabha is the Buddha of Infinite Light and presides over Sukhavati (the Western Paradise). Beautifully painted with natural mineral pigments on cotton, wonderful tranquil face, excellent quality painting, some expected wear, overall in great condition for a 200 years old d...

Early 19th century Tibetan / Mongolian thangka in original mounts depicting Tserendug - the White Old Man - Lord of the earth and water, protector of all living things. Rare icon, Tserendug as the patron of the plant and animal world is one of the ancient chthonic deities incorporated into Buddhist iconography and is associated with Buddha Amitayus. He is shown seated on a throne wearing a white robe and holding a rosary and a scroll in his hands, his two attendants behind him hold a staff with ...

Early 19th century Sino-Tibetan thangka depicting Agni on his mount - a ram, and holding a pot of water in one hand and rosary beads in the other. Very uncommon image: Agni was initially the God of fire in Hinduism (see the pit of flames that the ram is running on), but was incorporated into Buddhism as one of the twelve Devas (guardian deities found in or around Buddhist shrines) and is considered to be the guardian of the Southeast. Inscribed with 5 characters on the back (see detail). Beautif...

Early 19th century Tibetan / Mongolian thangka depicting Tserendug - the White Old Man - Lord of the earth and water, protector of all living things. Rare icon, Tserendug as the patron of the plant and animal world is one of the ancient chthonic deities incorporated into Buddhist iconography and is associated with Buddha Amitayus. He is shown seated on a lotus throne wearing a white robe and holding a staff with a dragon's head and a scroll, distant mountains, sun and moon among clouds behind hi...

Matching pair of early 19th century altar size Sino-Tibetan thangkas depicting Buddha Shakyamuni and Tsongkhapa, respectively. It is unusual to have a set. Historical Buddha is shown emanating rays of golden light, his right hand in bhumisparsha (earth-touching) mudra, his left hand holding an alms bowl, rich offerings in front of his lotus throne. Tsongkhapa was the great 14th century Buddhist teacher and the founder of the Gelugpa school of Tibetan Buddhism: he is shown meditating, flowers by ...