Temple Plaque, 20th Century
Tibet Autonomous Region, China
Gilt bronze and wood; 14 × 14 × 1 …

Images(2)

Temple Plaque

ClassificationsSculpture-plaques

Date20th Century

Made AtTibet Autonomous Region, China, Asia

MediumGilt bronze and wood

Dimensions14 × 14 × 1 in. (35.6 × 35.6 × 2.5 cm)

Credit LineGift of Anne and Long Shung Shih

Object number2021.8.1

DescriptionGilded plaques such as this one can be found hanging from the roofs of Tibetan temples or monasteries. Other examples of round, gilt bronze temple decorations are generally mandalas, with concentric levels of Buddhist symbols. Though also used as a temple decoration, this object is instead dominated by the Kalachakra Tenfold Powerful symbol. This symbol can further be broken down into its ten different components, which together represent the Kalachakra or the “wheel of time.” The first seven are stylized versions of Tibetan Ranjana characters which spell out the Kalachakra mantra, “Ham Ksha Ma La Va Ra Ya.” The crescent, disc, and tilaka refer to the speech, body, and mind mandalas respectively. The symbol is commonly used to ward against evil spirits.

On View

Not on view

Collections