Catalog (75)

This hand carved panel is from a Chinese Buddhist Temple erected around 1860. The panel is deeply carved with a scene which takes place at the foot of the sacred mountain. Bits of mother of Pearl are inlaid into the mountain and is also used to highlight a few costume details.

This panel was used as an architectural element and has the mortise cuts in the top which were used to hold the panel in place. It is one of a pair of panels which were taken from the temple. The condition of this p...

This antique copper gau would have been kept in a prayer niche in the home and would be worn as an ornament for festival. In place of the Tsatsa (clay figure), there is a Tsakli. It was common practice to use a tsakli (small picture card) to represent the religious item which would be placed in the gau, when time and money became available. The original written talisman remains inside the gau also.

Gaus like this were commonly used by the Tibetans living inside China and those livi...

For festivals including her wedding, a Yao girl of marriageable age would wear the traditional "celestial crown" clipped to her hair on the top of her head. This traditional ornament was common among the Yao of Laos, Thailand and China's Yunnan Province. Upon reaching puberty, the Yao girl would be expected to make her own crown following traditional patterns and methods of her local region. For some, the celestial crown would be worn as daily ornament, while other Yao groups would reserve the ...

This antique copper reposse gau houses a picture instead of a clay tsa tsa which was common for a family gau. when the family could afford to do so, the picture would be replaced by a clay tsatsa. Curiously, this gau also houses 2 amulets, which were typically provided by a monk. The paper is very old and I am told it is bad Karma to unfold the amulet.

The Tibetan Buddhists used the gau as a prayer shrine usually placed on a special shelf in the home along with any other religious relics o...

This small hand painted picture on cloth, called a Tsakli was used for Buddhist religious instruction and rituals in Tibet. The back of the card has Tibetan writing...Obvious condition issues...This card and others listed on this site were all antique cards when they were brought out of Tibet in the 60's...card is 3 x 3.5 inches

Both the wooden front and back covers of this Buddhist Sutra book are hand carved with different symbols. The numerous text pages are beautifully written with rich black ink with specific words written in red ink. The book still has its original leather binding strap.

This Tibetan sutra book approximately 12 inches wide, 4 inches tall, and 2 inches thick. Though the pages are in good condition, the covers show years of wear and use and is a wonderful artifact of an old culture.

This hand carved panel is from a Chinese Buddhist Temple erected around 1860. The panel is deeply carved with a scene which takes place at the foot of the sacred mountain. Bits of Mother of Pearl are inlaid into the mountain and is also used to highlight a few costume details.

This panel was used as an architectural element and has the mortise cuts in the top which were used to hold the panel in place. It is one of a pair of panels which were taken from the temple. The condition of this p...

Ornate small pair of Japanese Girls Day display Emperor and Empress Dolls 4 inches tall... complete with hat, headress, fan etc...

This apron is from the Huan Xi area and was part of the traditional Miao ethnic minority woman's festival costume. Made from home spun fibers,indigo dyed yarn, it is embroidered with tiny intricate cross stitch geometric design...the ties are also hand woven. The apron measures approx 17 x 17 inches and is in good condition...with a few very light stains which do not show on photo with enhancing...

The Chinese ethnic minority Miao are very fond of silver and would use any festival to display their ornate silver jewelry. This dragon necklace was used by a young girl child from one of the many Miao villages around the hills of Kali. The pendent is 6.5 inches wide, childs' size, but the decorative chain is long enough for an adult to wear. Because the pendent is hollow, it is comfortable to wear. As one moves, the necklace makes a soft tinkling sound.

This Miao Chinese ethnic minority jacket would have been worn by a teenage girl for festival. All the batik work was hand-painted and all stitches and embroidery was done by hand. The row of silver hemisphere's across the back represent the "bubble" in the Miao creation myth.

The jacket is approx 70 years old and is from Zhi Jin

Hanging from the belt on a leather strap, the stylized milking hook was the essential item of ornamentation for any Tibetan woman properly dressed for a festival. Surrounding the hook surface is a heavy etched silver band. The bronze/brass hook has is etched with markings and is inset with 5 large beads, set in silver bezels. The original leather strap shows lots of wear.

These ceremonial hooks have become hard to obtain. The hook alone measures 5.5 inches long and the strap adds anothe...

He is charming...well detailed leaning on a pillows ...a few nicks and bruises to the finish as to be expected at this age...roughly 4 inches tall and 6 inches wide...

Hand carved heavy old wooden Quran (aka Koran) Muslin book reader out of Middle East, Central Asia. Reader folds flat when not in use and has extra arm separator for storage of additional pages. Good patina, some wear marks as expected in an item of this age

This Tibetan shrine shaped gau (aka prayer box) is actually a religious shrine. When not being worn as an ornament during festivals, it would be kept in the prayer niche of the family home. The back of the box slides open. Frequently, a special prayer i.e. sutra pages would be placed inside. The small glass window at the front displays a Tsa tsa, which is a clay statue of a Buddhist Diety. These statues were made only by the monks and considered to be a holy relic. This antique gau has a f...

This is a wonderfully detailed silver needle case which was worn hanging from the belt. It has it's original long leather thong and silk tassel. Each side of the silver case has a central stone bead...one coral, one turquoise. The sides of the case (not pictured) have incised cloud/wave pattern. When opened, the case has copper with fabric arm to hold the needles. For indigenous and nomadic people, needles were an essential and valuable tool for survival of daily life. Because they were no...

Barely used, this baby head cover was once attached to the upper part of a baby carrier so that it could be raised around the baby's head to protect it from the hot sun during a festival. Hand batiked with hand embroidered details, the border is decorated with rows of the tiniest hand stitching. measures 13.5 x 14.5 inches

This is a page from the rare Burmese Buddhist Sutra manuscript called the the KAMMAVACA. The pages of these religious sutras were made from a thin strip of bamboo covered with cloth (frequently monks robes) which was thickly coated with red lacquer and gold leaf decoration. Lacquer from tamarind seed was used for the square black lettered text which is in the now extinct Burmese religious script of Pali. The small hole on the page allows a string to bind the various pages of the sutra toget...

This rare ceremonial Chinese "lock" necklace is Hmong ethnic minority. Made from pure bouillon silver, it over weighs 4.5 lbs. The Hmong Ethnic Minority group range from southern China into Northern Thailand. This piece was sourced out of China to a dealer sometime between 1920-1930. In both Chinese and ethnic minority cultures, the lock necklace acts as a talisman and symbolically "protects" the wearer from ill fortune, much as a lock on a piece of furniture will protect the contents inside...

The 5 musicians from palace set of Girls Day Hina Dolls...the 2 musicians in the rear are are seated on stools are each 4.5 inches tall. The 3 seated on the floor are 3.5 inches tall

This old drum from Nepal was used for festival and carried in parades. The man would use the left hand to hold the drum by the handmade ropes across the back of the drum. He would use the right hand to strike the drum skin. The chains and metal bits hanging from the bottom would add an extra "jangle" sound while drum moving. Clearly made as folk art instrument, the drum is somewhat out of round and about 18" at the widest diameter.

Henry Noel Humphreys, "Parables of our Lord" printed 1847, New York,D. Appleton edition. 2000 of these books were printed in 1947 and, of those, 1000 were printed with D. Appleton title page. Front and Back book covers are made of Paper-Mache boards covered with elaborately carved black plaster. 31 pages plus the title page are multi-colored chromolithographed, illuminated with each page having a different design. According to the inscription, this copy was a gift from Will, an "affectionat...

The Tibetan leather flint pouch (aka strike a light) is properly known as a "mechag" (me = fire , chag = iron) or fire iron. This Tibetan flint pouch is decorated with ornate silver and bronze ornamentation with an inset red bead which appears to be a replacement for the original bead. The pouch would have been secured to the wears belt with the attached leather strap.

This is large strike a light ...the strike plate spans 6.5 inches and the purse including handle is 5 inches high...an wide...

This antique chinese hat would have been worn for festival by a Yi ethnic minority girl (woman) from the Honghe area. Worn for festival, the "cockssome cap" is elaborately decorated with faceted silver beads. Enlargement 5 shows cock hat as it would be worn. Hat comes with its own custom made stand.

This Tibetan talisman has a sealed leather herb bag hanging on each side of a small bronze sitting Buddha which is also displayed in a leather casing. The Buddha is depicted as holding a small bottle. All 3 pieces are hanging from a matching leather strap so that it could be worn around the neck of the individual.

Old wooden Phurba...nicely aged patina from handling and use... Faces topped with diadems, 3 side "blade"section has carved scroll design almost 11 inches long high. Alternative spelling...phurpa,phurbha, Pronunciation: Fur-bah The Phurba is a special triple sided Tibetan ritual dagger or stake, patterned after an ancient Vedic tool. Originated as a stake that tethered sacrificial animals. It is used ritually to create stability and areas of protected space, often staked into the gro...

This belt would have been worn for festival gatherings. Decorated with beads, cowrie shells and central turquoise medallion the belt strap is narrow approx 1.25 inched wide. Hanging from the belt are beaded strands in graduated lengths with each strand ending with a cowrie shell. There is a cord tie attached so that the belt can be tied at the back of the wearer. It is a lovely piece

This lovely antique bell is a traditional Ghanta, which is a Tibetan Buddhist ritual bell, sometimes called Dril, bu,and/or singing bell. Just over 6 inches tall, this Ghana is paired with the Dorje at the top of the handle, and the surface is decorated with an abundance of Tibetan symbols. This bell has the original clapper, has a lovely tone and beautiful patina. Bell is 6.5 inches (16.5 CM) tall

The Ghanta represents feminine power, wisdom, receptiveness, and the voice of the Buddha.

This is woodblock is carved on both sides so that it was used to print 2 different pages of a Tibetan Sutra book. ...Age and use are obvious and there are a few nicks and bruises but no serious loss... A true ethnographic relic measures 14 inches x 3 inches x 7/8th inch...

This small sitting Buddha dates to the 16th century...The cast metal is somewhat deteriorated as would be expected. The names and borders of the countries of southeast Asia have changed and moved over the centuries which makes naming specific country of origin somewhat difficult....Thailand,Burma,Siam... This is a wonderful artifact of Southeast Asian religious culture. 4 inches tall...

For Girls Day Palace display 3 male attendants each approximately 4 inches tall

Originally part of a full sized Tibetan adult costume, this piece was cut down to complete a childs festival costume. Decorated with turquoise, coins, tassels and silver ornaments, this type of textile accessory would often be attached to the elaborate headdress or hat and drape down the back to complete the wearers costume. The Tibetan people are not wastefull and items of festival garments in any condition are hard to acquire. I have had it hanging on my wall for a number of years. Today, ...

In Tibetan Buddhism, the Kartika, or Drigug, is a ritual flaying knife used in burial rituals, with the handle crafted as a dorje. A tool of the wrathful female deities known as Dakinis, the kartika symbolizes the cutting of all things material, symbolized by the human body. The blade is left dull (never sharpened) because it was used in a ritual representing the flaying of flesh and not for the actual purpose.

This beautiful antique short strand of beads would have been carried in the pocket and taken out for ritual religious prayer...2 spacer counter beads are honey amber and the 3rd is red coral...

This antique Chinese offering cup would have been filled with water for Buddha and left at the temple alter. It dates from WanLi Reign during the Ming Dynasty.

The cup is black lacquer, peach shaped for long life, has a footed bottom, and ornate finger stops on each side. It has several nicks and chips as is appropriate for its age. The cup is 1.25 inches high and 3 inches across at the widest point.

This small strand of Buddhist prayer beads would have been kept in a pocket or looped on a belt. Bought in China from a Tibetan, the strand of tiny dark beads is broken up with coral beads to assist in counting. The 3 fabric triangles, from departed monks robes, are amulets containing various protective prayers. When used for ritual prayers, the fabric talisman would be held in the closed fist while the fingers count the beads. An Ancestors tooth, not bone, hangs from one of the talismans to...