A CARVED BONE MALA WITH 108 SKULL BEADS, SIN-‘PHEN, TIBET, 18TH-19TH CENTURY

拍品描述

A CARVED BONE MALA WITH 108 SKULL BEADS, SIN-‘PHEN, TIBET, 18TH-19TH CENTURY Stringed with a total of one hundred and ten beads, all carved and pierced from bone in the form of grinning skulls, with both ends knotted together after passing through a single, small skull bead. The beads with a fine, naturally grown, dark patina. Dimensions: 158 cm (total) Buddhist rosaries evolved from ancient Hindu-Indian mala prayer beads. In Tibet, they are known as sin-‘phen and used by both laymen and monks. Generally, they comprise 108 beads plus others as counters or markers. The main prayer beads were used to count repetitions of prayers. Skulls and skeletons are commonly found in Tibetan Buddhist art, often as decorative elements on crowns, garlands, and rosaries as seen in the present lot. Skeletons also appear as a protector or dharmapala in Tibetan Buddhism and Vajrayana Buddhism of the Himalayas in the form of the Citipati, a pair of male and female dancing skeletal deities who represent both the eternal dance of death as well as perfect awareness. Literature comparison: Compare a closely related but smaller carved human bone mala with a hundred skulls, Tibet, dated 19th century, 120 cm (long), in the Guimet Museum, object number MA 3459, illustrated in Nathalie Bazin (2002), Rituels tibetains. Visions secretes du Ve Dalai Lama, p. 170. Compare a closely related but also smaller carved bone mala with skulls, Tibet, dated 18th-19th century, sold at Michael Backman, London, no. 7324. Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Zacke, Vienna, 7 March 2025, lot 6 Price: EUR 19,500 or approx. EUR 20,500 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related carved bones skull heads and patina. Note the smaller size (125 cm)

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