Lot 589
Tibetan 18th C. Gilded Copper Votive Heads | Death Head & Skulls
Tibetan 18th C. Gilded Copper Votive Heads | Death Head & Skulls
Starting Bid: $2,000
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Tibet, ca. 18th - 19th century. Three hollow hammer molded copper votive heads, including a gilded death head with dangling eyeballs, blue-black striated hairdo and having a painful facial expression. Flanked by two additional gilded skulls. The skull signifies the impermanent, illusory, and empty nature of all things. All have excellent old surface patinas. Mounted together on a custom pedestal base.
In Tibetan Buddhist philosophy, the skull is among the most potent of all symbolic forms, signifying the impermanent, illusory, and empty nature of all phenomena — a reminder that all conditioned existence is transient and that liberation lies in the direct recognition of this truth. Skull imagery pervades Tibetan ritual art, appearing on the crowns of wrathful deities, in the hands of dakinis, and as offerings on shrine tables, where they serve as powerful aids to meditation on impermanence and the nature of mind.
Examples of objects from The McFadden Collection have been exhibited at Drexel University and Moore College of Art and Design in Philadelphia, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, Allentown Art Museum, Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston, and elsewhere in the United States and around the world. Drexel is currently hosting her exhibition “Modern Ritual: The Art of Mary McFadden.”. Size: 3.75” (9.5cm) to 4”H (10.2cm).
Provenance: Private American collection. Ex. fashion designer Mary McFadden collection, (1938-2024).
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Item #
71777
- Condition: Intact, excellent condition.
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| From: | To: | Increments: |
|---|---|---|
| $0 | $749 | $25 |
| $750 | $1,499 | $50 |
| $1,500 | $2,999 | $100 |
| $3,000 | $7,499 | $250 |
| $7,500 | $14,999 | $500 |
| $15,000 + | $1,000 |