1609 Old Himalayan Crystal Buddhist Art Mahakala

A fine example of Buddhist devotional art - a Statuette of Mahakala set in a casing of Old Himalayan Crystal

RESERVED

Thirteen figures in addition to the central Mahakala figure in all of 5 inches!

Encased on a base of (most likely) gold & (quite likely) rubies.

This crystal is hand-mined from the Himalayas from heights of up to 15,000 ft above sea level. The location of the deposits makes it inaccessible for machinery and heavy tools and so the crystals are hand mined by locals and transported back by rucksacks and mules on week long treks.

The crystal is known by spiritual-minded as ‘The Eyes of God’ and is therefore handled with great care and respect.

The main figure is made of a different material ... may be resin of some type.

Gilted in gold and adorned with what are quite likely rubies

While the crystal itself would have formed at the time of the formation of the Himalayas a few million years ago, the carving is estimated to be from the early 1900s but could be from an earlier period

 5 inches x 4.5 inches x 1.5 inches

A Himalayan crystal piece sold for US$7000 in an Australian auction in 2018. LINK

Tibetan Rock Crystal Phurba has also sold at Sotheby's in 2005 for US$8000 LINK

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This item has spent a lifetime being used for the purpose of its creation with the original artist/user. Signs of this life lived heartily may be present on the piece in the form of stains, thread loss, loose threads, holes, tears, color run and other imperfections. Therefore the condition must be assumed to be “not” perfect. More photos of such imperfections will be provided on request.

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