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Lot Essay
Originating in China as early as 200 AD, woodblock printing was adopted as an artistic technique throughout east Asia. The two present examples from Tibet are printed on coveted yellow silk. The first depicts Kalachakra in union with Vishvamata, the principal deities of the Sanskrit Kalachakra Tantra, a text of complex Tibetan Buddhist teachings and practices. The couple stands encircled by a fiery halo with Shakyamuni Buddha seated above flaked by Raja Chandra Bhadra on the left and Vidyadhara Manjuskirit on the right. The bottom corners depict the bird-headed Shabala Garuda on the left and Vishvamata on the right with an abundance of offerings between them.
The second work depicts the fifth Dalai Lama seated on a lavish throne with lotus blossoms, auspicious symbols and offerings before him. Two lines of Tibetan script at the bottom translate to:
Lobsang enjoys the teaching at celestial Garden,
The image of dharma king who is well verse in scripture and philosophy,
Beautifully adorned with all the major and minor marks,
Prostrate to the nature of the three jewels.
This portrait was blessed 100 times by the lord himself.
Compare the figure of Kalachakra with another depiction of Kalachakra from a set of block prints on gold silk depicting the secret biography of the Seventh Dalai Lama in Tibet House, New Delhi (HAR 71959).
The second work depicts the fifth Dalai Lama seated on a lavish throne with lotus blossoms, auspicious symbols and offerings before him. Two lines of Tibetan script at the bottom translate to:
Lobsang enjoys the teaching at celestial Garden,
The image of dharma king who is well verse in scripture and philosophy,
Beautifully adorned with all the major and minor marks,
Prostrate to the nature of the three jewels.
This portrait was blessed 100 times by the lord himself.
Compare the figure of Kalachakra with another depiction of Kalachakra from a set of block prints on gold silk depicting the secret biography of the Seventh Dalai Lama in Tibet House, New Delhi (HAR 71959).