1114 SOLD Antique Burmese Manuscript Kammavaca - Early 1800s

Sold to a discerning Antique Art-Lover

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Superb Ancient Burmese Kammavaca Manuscript on Palm Leaf

14 palm leaf pages (28 sides front and back), plus the two wood covers

Wooden covers, pages lacquered and gilded. Pali Script – Tamarind lacquer.

The covers and leaves have two holes in them in which small bamboo sticks are usually inserted in order to hold the leaves together. The Pali text is written in black resinous lacquer in ornate Burmese characters known as “tamarind-seed” script, also referred to as “square” script.

Gilding worn in places. The pages have suffered from the passing of time and some edges or corners crumbled.

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Note that there are 5 lines of lacquered script on each page.

Note also the character of the border present between any two lines of text. Unlike floral curvilinear patterns, what we see here is a neatly hatched border.

Both these features are distinct characteristic of manuscripts produced in the second half of the 18th century - early 19th century.

This is therefore estimated to be from the that period.

55cm x 8.90cm

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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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