Tibetan buddhist Temple
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Tibetan Buddhist Art furniture & Antiques from the monasteries of the Ser Shong (Golden Valley)
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0094 Precious Elephant Altar Table
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Tibetan buddhist hand painted alter with two elephants on front
lotus and camp flowers on side of Tibetan Buddhist altar table
right side with Holy flowers
front view
left side
right side

Click on the thumbnail pictures above to see larger views

The art work on this altar table is quite exceptional, there is no contamination of the white which is the norm on pieces of this age. The Precious Elephant is in full battle dress which is very unusual to see.  The top is not painted and there is some wood shrinkage resulting in small gaps in the planks. The sides feature the holy flowers, the Lotus and the Camp flower, part of the trinity of Tibetan Buddhist flowers.  See the iconography for more information.  This table comes with a certificate of authenticity signed by Do Jee Tse Rang, a Tibetan Buddhist monk at the Sange Monastery.  The wood panels are Asian cedar solids while the frame is an unknown hardwood. The trim is done in the kyungbur technique that dominates Tibetan Buddhist art. The only metal hardware on this piece are the brass coins on the drawer fronts. The hinges of the doors are wood-pegs in the doors that fit into a hole in the underside of the top & slide into a groove on the base. The door-pull is the vertical kyungbured trim in the center of the two doors. The front, & both sides are hand-painted, the gold is 24kt on the "T" wave trim just under the top edge and the zig-zag kyungbur frame.

Age: approx 1790-1805
Dimensions (overall)    H=22.5" W=24" D=14.5" (inside of doors) H=12.5" W=21" (drawer) H=3" D=12" W=8"  (all measurements + or - .25") 

SOLD SHIPPING TO SALT LAKE CITY NOV 09

item #00094 Price $1995.00, plus shipping: ~EAST COAST $94.00 ~  MIDWEST $85 ~/MTN STATES $79.00 ~   WEST COAST $72.00; other destinations, contact us  for a quote.     

Iconography

The front doors have Chakravartin's, AKAWheel Turner, Precious Elephant in full battle gear carrying a large red object, most likely red coral, although the shape is not the usual configuration. The term Chakravartin in Hinduism refers to an ideal ruler, but in Buddhism, Chakravartin has come to mean a Buddha whose all-encompassing teachings are universally true.  Chakravartin has an army of 4 divisions, infantry, cavalry, elephants, and chariots. Chakravartin is the lineage of 25 Kulika kings or enlightened monarchs, the 25th of which will finally defeat the "non-believers." The Precious Elephant is a symbol of the strength of the mind in Buddhism. Exhibiting noble gentleness, the precious elephant serves as a symbol of the calm majesty possessed by one who is on the path. Specifically, it embodies the boundless powers of the Buddha, which are miraculous aspiration, effort, intention, and analysis.  Elephant tusks are sometimes depicted and are symbolic of the whole elephant.

 The table's sides feature two of the 3 holy flowers, the Lotus and the Camp flower.  The lotus flower  is another natural symbol and represents earth.  Tibetan Buddhist mystics imagined the earth floating like a lotus flower on the oceans of the universe. The heart of the flower is the cosmic mountain, the axis of the universe. The generally acknowledged meaning of the lotus flower is purity of mind or divine creation. From the muck of a pond, where the roots of the lotus reside, an immaculate white flower emerges to rest on the surface of the water as a metaphor for the harmonious unfolding of spirituality. The lotus is an important Buddhist motif.  Images of the Buddha and other important persons often are shown seated on a lotus throne.  The growth of the lotus, with its roots in mud, growing through water, and emerging as a wonderful plant above the water's surface, is seen as an analogy of the soul’s path from the mud of materialism to the purity of enlightenment. The 3 stages of the lotus, bud, utpala (mid-blossom) and the full blossoming throne represent the past present and future respectively.

The bottom panel of the side has a trefoil with stylized durva grass radiating outward forming the shape of an eye.

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