Catalog (55)

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a very good 18th century gilded bronze Thai buddha, seated in bhumisparsa mudra, gilded lacquer over bronze with interesting glass inserts to the base, and all the indicia of legitimate age and genuineness.

Size and Condition: 13 inches tall, 8 1/2 inches wide. There is obvious age-related wear to the gilding and some lacquer has flaked off in a few random places, but in small amounts. The finial has been broken off and re-stuck, and some glass inlay ha...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a large and classic 19th century Burmese Hsun-ok from Pagan, of well- known and documented form, constructed of wood that is first lacquered in black, and then covered in successive layers of cinnabar-colored lacquer called hinthabada. Over time, through use and handling, the cinnabar lacquer wears off to reveal the black lacquer base underneath as seen on this example, in an effect likened to the negoro effect seen in Japanese lacquerware.

These old,...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a large and classic 19th century Burmese Hsun-ok from Pagan, of well- known and documented form, constructed of wood that is first lacquered in black, and then covered in successive layers of cinnabar-colored lacquer called hinthabada. Over time, through use and handling, the cinnabar lacquer wears off to reveal the black lacquer base underneath. The negoro effect here is not as pronounced on this piece as it is on our other recently posted hsun-ok (see item ...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a fine and rare Burmese dry lacquer Buddha, 19th century or earlier, exquisitely modeled with a beautifully serene meditative visage that is quintessentially Shan Burmese in form, featuring a broad sweeping forehead framed by a glass mosaic adorned fillet band, high-set eyebrows, a sharply linear nose with flared nostrils, a small mouth with thin lips gently curved upward into a half smile, three neck creases, and characteristically elongated earlobes that ext...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a fine gilt bronze Thai Reliquary, 19th century Rattanakosin Period (Thailand), consisting of a two-tiered bronze structure that houses a hollowed compartment for storing relics, with each tier elegantly cast with Buddha images in various poses and mudras. On the bottom tier, these include four Reclining Buddhas, four Standing Buddhas, and four Cambodian-influenced Cobra-Hooded Buddhas. On the top tier, four Sitting Buddhas are situated within open windows f...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a large and well-carved image of the Burmese monk Mogallana, 19th century. The carving is rendered in gilding and black lacquer over carved hardwood, with shell inserts for the eyes, typical for the better quality Mandalay era pieces. Overall, the piece is very nicely executed with good expressiveness and presence, making it very suitable for part of a shrine ensemble, or simply for display as a centerpiece on its own.

Size and Condition: Height is ...

A very good late 19th - early 20th century Tibetan ewer, crafted of thin, hand-worked sheets of what is probably some type of brass/bronze amalgam that has acquired a rich chocolate patina over time, with deep repousse and chasing techniques forming the decorative bands along the shoulder, neck, and lid of vessel, a well-formed makara shaped spout and handle, all atop a splayed footed base. Overall a very nice example with legitimate age, good presence, and very decorative.

Size and Condi...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a fine and large late 19th / early 20th century gold thread ceremonial shoulder cloth, or kain selendag songket, from the Minangkabau people of Sumatra, Indonesia, circa 1890-1920, executed using heavy gauge gold thread intricately woven into floral and geometric motifs on a red silk backing. The processes for creating and spinning the gold thread and weaving the design motifs are excruciatingly time consuming, thus this technique is generally reserved for pi...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a fine and complete Burmese Kammavaca Manuscript, late 19th - early 20th century, containing all 16 leaves and the original teak wood covers.

Kammavaca manuscripts are a quintessentially Burmese artifact that reflect the general reverence afforded to the monastic system in that country. To Western eyes, they are usually just highly decorative ethnic handicrafts from an isolated and exotic culture. But to the Burmese, they are a rather important and quit...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a fine and large late 19th / early 20th century silver thread ceremonial shoulder cloth, or kain selendag songket, from the Minangkabau people of Sumatra, Indonesia, circa 1890-1920, executed using heavy gauge silver thread intricately woven into floral and geometric motifs on a red silk backing. The processes for creating and spinning the silver thread and weaving the design motifs are excruciatingly time consuming, thus this technique is generally reserved f...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, an important and magnificently large, published, inscribed and dated Burmese temple Buddha, Mandalay School, constructed of fabulously carved hardwood coated in reddish-brown lacquer and gilt, depicting Buddha seated in padmasana position with his right hand in bhumisparsa mudra, elevated upon a single tier base with iron temple security rings, and bearing a raised-lacquer dedication inscription that essentially translates as follows: "Wish-fulfilling Kabalon ...

See description for item # 990732: a Large, Published, Inscribed, Dated, Burmese Buddha

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a good and large vintage Indonesian batik executed in three different shades of blue, along with rust, peach, olive, black, brown, white, and signed by the artist.

Batik is one of many methodologies of fabric decoration employed in Indonesia's long and rich textile tradition. Those unfamiliar with the process will not immediately recognize how the designs are rendered, but it is essentially a wax-resist type of dyeing operation where certain sections o...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a good Thai repousse silver box with burlwood lining, depicting the Thai and Burmese kings in battle during the sixteenth century. Sourced directly from Chiang Mai Thailand in 1990, this is a substantial box of good quality silver. The exterior has been allowed to patinate for 20 years and has taken on the usual dark grey patina typical for sterling silver, but the interior is completely pristine as it has never actually been used. A new owner may prefer to ...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a lovely handmade silk on cotton vintage table runner from Laos, using tan colored silk woven into geometric designs with magenta and blue/green colored accents. The runner is shown only half size as we have folded it to fit within the confines of our display boards, but it is actually quite long and very well-suited for long dinner tables or sideboards. It can also be displayed either framed or unframed as a wall hanging. Acquired in the late 1980's, we can b...

A contemporary but very attractive Tibetan ewer, crafted of thin, hand-worked sheets of white metal that appear to be some type of nickel/aluminum amalgam, decorated with deep repousse and chasing techniques forming the decorative bands along the shoulder, neck, lid, and upper base of vessel, with well-formed makara shaped spout and handle, all atop a splayed footed base. This is a contemporary piece exactly 15 years old, but a very attractive ethnic handicraft.

Size and Condition: 12 1/2...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a large and very attractive Indonesian tribal mask, crafted from a dark hardwood we think is either teak or some other rosewood variant, inlaid with mother of pearl or shell. They craft a lot of masks in different versions in Bali, but the more frequently encountered version you see there is a much smaller but heavily painted multicolor style, that we tend to find a bit gaudy. We selected this style from Central Java for its austere but artful presence, achiev...

From our Southeast Asia Collection, a vibrant and highly decorative Indonesian batik in the form of a village scene with figures, from Yogyjakarta (Indonesia), executed in rich turquoise, black, brown, straw color, and other earth tones, and signed by the artist.

Batik is one of many methodologies of fabric decoration employed in Indonesia's long and rich textile tradition. Those unfamiliar with the process will not immediately recognize how the designs are rendered, but it is essentially ...