Antique Tibetan tsakli card depicting a ḍākinī with phurba in one hand. Painted in mineral colors on paper with Sanskrit writing on the back.

Tsakli cards are powerful miniature paintings of Buddhist deities and objects. They have many different ritual uses. They can be used for teaching when a lama holds the card out for a student to focus on, thus helping them with the visualization and meditation on that deity and what it represents. The cards are often used as part of altar di...

Antique Tibetan tsakli card depicting a wrathful deity (Heruka) wielding a sword and banner. He wears a tiger skin around his middle and a human skin tied around his neck. Painted in mineral colors on paper with Sanskrit description on the back.

Tsakli cards are powerful miniature paintings of Buddhist deities and objects. They have many different ritual uses. They can be used for teaching when a lama holds the card out for a student to focus on, thus helping them with the visualiz...

Antique Tibetan tsakli card depicting a wrathful deity (Heruka) wielding a knife on the back of a fu-lion. Painted in mineral colors on paper with Sanskrit description on the back.

Tsakli cards are powerful miniature paintings of Buddhist deities and objects. They have many different ritual uses. They can be used for teaching when a lama holds the card out for a student to focus on, thus helping them with the visualization and meditation on that deity and what it represents. The ca...

Antique Tibetan tsakli card depicting a beast-headed ḍākinī. Painted in mineral colors on paper with Sanskrit writing on the back.

Tsakli cards are powerful miniature paintings of Buddhist deities and objects. They have many different ritual uses. They can be used for teaching when a lama holds the card out for a student to focus on, thus helping them with the visualization and meditation on that deity and what it represents. The cards are often used as part of altar displays that...

Antique Tibetan tsakli card depicting a wrathful deity (Heruka) wielding a sword on horseback. Painted in mineral colors on paper with Sanskrit description on the back.

Tsakli cards are powerful miniature paintings of Buddhist deities and objects. They have many different ritual uses. They can be used for teaching when a lama holds the card out for a student to focus on, thus helping them with the visualization and meditation on that deity and what it represents. The cards are ofte...

A Japanese Satsuma Gosu blue bowl of a spiral motifs with enamels and gilt. Edo period middle 19th century Sizes: 27 x 2 cm. Condition report: Good condition

Antique Tibetan bronze seated figure of Vajrasattva. Also called Dorje Sempa, Dorje means "indestructible diamond" and Sempa is the Tibetan term for Sattva in Sanskrit meaning "heroic being". Sempa in this case, refers to the role of a Bodhisattva, someone on the road to becoming a Buddha but who has stayed behind, selflessly dedicating themselves to helping others gain enlightenment. Draped in beauty and calm, Vajrasattva sits on a lotus throne with a vajra scepter in one hand and a vajra...

Small round zushi consisting of two parts. The outside of both are covered in nashiji lacquer. On the inside of the one part in relief is carved in fine detail the image of Bishamonten holding a trident and a pagoda, subduing two demons. Inside the cover sits Benzaiten playing the biwa.
Bishamon and Benten are two of the seven gods of good fortune (shichifukujin), but they each hold a position in the Buddhist pantheon, as well.
Both images in plain, unpainted camphor wood.

Jap...

An incredible large antique Japanese merchant Todana Tansu (storage chest with doors and drawers) in 2 sections made of Keyaki (Zelkova) and Sugi (Cryptomeria) woods. Originally used in a Japanese store to stock and display wares and supplies as well as provide a beautiful functional furniture accent for the merchant. Original hand made iron locks that were used to secure the contents when the store was closed.

Constructed using mortise and tenon joinery as well as floating wood panels w...

Height: 19.1 cm (7.8 in)
Width: 18.6 cm (7.5 in)

Fine Chinese Kangxi blue and white porcelain Children’s or Boys’ jar; shows children playing in a garden setting; minor scratches; very good condition; email for more pictures

Here we have a very unique ceremonial tea implement made by one of the most important figures from Japanese tea culture in the past century. While most tea scoops (chashaku) are made of bamboo, this piece is fashioned from the branch of a plum tree and retains part of the bark on the handle. Fashioned by the 14th Tea Master of Urasenke, this is a very rare and interesting implement.

Matcha tea culture in Japan stretches back nearly 1,000 years, when it was first brought to its shore...

Kawase Hasui (1883-1957)
Hikawa Park, Omiya
Size: Oban. Approximately 15.5 x 10.5 inches.
Date: 1930.
Publisher: Watanabe Shozaburo. Round, red 6 mm seal at lower left, indicating a lifetime printing (1946-1957).
Signed and sealed by the artist.
Reference: Hotei #207.
Condition: Excellent. Top back margin corner has paper residue.
"Omiya...was prosperous during the Tokugawa period (1600-1868) as a post-station on the Nakasendo." - Hotei.

A beautiful example of a Hakeme style bowl, this one quite rare as it was made around 200 years ago by the son of the founder of the Dohachi line of potters. Traditionally decorated using a brush made from rice straw, a white slip is applied to the darker clay body with a wide sweeping stroke to achieve the effect seen here. Over time this style became a favorite among Japanese tea masters for its natural and unpretentious feeling.

One of the most well-known names in Kyoto pottery, ...

Old sake bottle of strong conical shape with a short neck and everted rim.
Underneath the beautiful milky feldspar glaze a cobalt bue and black sketch-like drawing of sprigs of bamboo. Bottom glazed brown, as is typical for this ware. Mingei.

Most likely Ofuke (or Ofukei) ware, made near Nagoya, Japan.
Edo period, circa 1800
H ca. 6 x diam at bottom ca. 5.5 in.

Ofukei has a historical relation to Seto ware. Similar pieces were produced in the Seto region.

Kintsug...

A nice pair of Chinese Northern Song dynasty celadon roundels decorated with twin fish and sea waves around them. Products of Jiangxi or Fujian province. These pieces are not shards or cover, the side edges are meant to leave unglaze, therefore they are individuals pieces. Not sure their usage, probably kitchenware or imitation of bronze mirror. Dia. 13.5 to 14cm each. Condition: minor chips, no restore, in good condition as shown. Shipping from Taipei, Taiwan via EMS at actual cost. Item sellin...

Description:

A high-footed Qingbai censer was in decent form.
By flat mouth rim. the censer was stand with floral stem foot.
In characteristic lake-green tint, the glaze was suffused with whitish incursions when frets were observed on the ridges of the floral patterns.
Characteristic and darken firing effects were yielded on the body clay inside the stem foot.

Date: Northern Song Dynasty, 11th/12th century.

Height: 14.8cm, Diam: 12.6cm.

The size of Bowl 6 5/8" Dia x 2" High. Japanese Ko Imari Porcelain Bowl. The bowl is bit larger than regular Namasu bowl. The bowl has the unusual design of archer sitting at the front of Japanese house with wave design. Arrow hit dead eye center. There are two sections divided by gold decoration of dragon with flower design around. The condition of bowl excellent, no chip, no crack and no hairline. There is some of tiny green leaf and purple enamel spots are missing due to the age which often h...

Shrine with the very rare image of the death of the historical Buddha Shakyamuni, called nehan-zu, and his entrance into the state or perfect peace, called nirvana or nehan. The Buddha lays stretched out on a rectangular lotus base, his head resting on his right arm. Although normally in nehan-zu one will see gathered around the bed 52 kinds of beings, human and animals mourning the Buddha, there are none present in this zushi. From the ceiling of the case hangs a curtain of sorts.
Carved ...