19TH CENTURY

Details

A CHINESE GILT BRONZE AND REPOUSSE KHATVANGA STAFF
19TH CENTURY
The six-sided shaft is applied with a knotted and flowing ribbon and a double-sided drum, damaru, and a bell, surmounted by a long-life vase with four leaf-shaped pendants, two heads and a skull, the whole terminating in a flaming trident with two hanging pendant tassels to the top and a jewel at the bottom
42 ½ in. (108 cm.) high

Special notice

Prospective purchasers are advised that several countries prohibit the importation of property containing materials from endangered species, including but not limited to coral, ivory and tortoiseshell. Accordingly, prospective purchasers should familiarize themselves with relevant customs regulations prior to bidding if they intend to import this lot into another country.

Lot Essay

The khatvanga is a Lamaist tantric staff or ritual implement held by deities, and has various interpretations depending on the school of Buddhist thought. The staff offered here is surmounted by the trident which represents the three Buddhas of the past, present and future. Beneath sits the three impaled heads - a freshly severed head, a decaying head and a dry skull above the long-life vase which holds the nectar of immortality. As a whole the khatvanga can also symbolise the universe with sections representing the earth and its continents and sub-continents and the paradise of the Buddhas.

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