Antique Tibetan Thangka Painting on Fabric, 18th Century

This Tibetan Thangka painting was done by a Buddhist monk in the eighteenth century. It was used as a teaching aid for acolytes or as a personal meditation mandala. It depicts the vast black void of the universe out of which sacred images of the Buddha, deities, bodhisattvas, devotees, and other images emerge. In the center is a large Dharma Wheel with the eight-armed Avalokiteshvara Buddha at the center. He is the Buddha of Compassion and a guide for the human race to change from the path of delusion to the path of enlightenment. Around him emanate eight spokes of the Wheel representing the eightfold Noble Path to Enlightenment, each spoke containing stacked images of the Buddha. The three parts of the Wheel are the Hub at the center representing Wisdom, the Rim representing Integrity; and the spokes representing Attentiveness. Above the wheel is the Buddha's Victory Banner which proclaims victory over ignorance. All around the wheel, in the universe, are further images of the Buddha and other figures and symbolic items. For example, in the lower right area are fig trees under which the Buddha was born, where he gained enlightenment, and at his request where he passed into Nirvana.

Because this thangka was used as a scroll, there is normal wear from rolling and unrolling, yet the image is strong and vibrant, and the cloth is in stable condition. It is painted using the distemper technique of warmed pigments suspended in watered animal glue. It has been mounted for many years in this 20th century gold-colored frame, linen mat, and glass. The sight measurements are: 17.5"W x 27"H. The overall frame measurements are listed below. The photos are blurred because of the photography under glass, but the actual thangka is sharper than it appears here. I did not remove the thangka from the frame to inspect the back or to photograph it.