Page 82 - Bonhams Image of Devotion Hong Kong December 2, 2021

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A TIGER-STRIPED WOOL RUG This fine Tibetan rug features three colorful mandalas floating in a sea
TIBET, CIRCA 19TH CENTURY of abstract tiger stripes. Asymmetrically arranged, the stripes add
Natural colors, wool construction.
Himalayan Art Resources item no.4514 dynamism to the composition while also lending coherence and order
176 x 99 cm (69 1/4 x 39 in.) to the overall piece. The size and shape of the work suggest it was
likely used as a sleeping rug (khaden), which would have been placed
HKD100,000 - 150,000 on a raised platform for its owner to rest at night. Sleeping rugs are
used throughout Tibet. For other examples of khaden with similar
西藏 約十九世紀 毛料虎紋毯 three-medallion designs, see Cole, Patterns of Life, 2010, pp.82-4,
nos.37-9. Also see a floor rug with a closely related tiger-skin design
(ibid., p.49, no.12).
Published
Deborah Ashencaen & Gennady Leonov, Visions of Perfect Worlds:
Buddhist Art from the Himalayas, Spink & Son Ltd., London, 1999,
no.80.

Provenance
Spink and Son Ltd., London, 1999
Private European Collection

80 | BONHAMS