Page 156 - Christie's Important Chinese Works of Art, May 31 to June 1, 2023 Hong Kong

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A SET OF A GILT-BRONZE VAJRA AND A 明十五/十六世紀 鎏金銅金剛杵及局部鎏金銅金剛鈴一套
PARCEL-GILT BRONZE CEREMONIAL BELL,
GHANTA 來源:
修行中心，波特蘭，俄勒岡州，入藏於1990年代
MING DYNASTY, 15 -16 TH CENTURY
TH
金剛杵與金剛鈴為藏傳佛教重要法器，亦是修金剛法者不可或缺之手持物，
The eight-prong vajra has a central bulb flanked on either side by 右杵左鈴，各別代表了慈悲與男性及智慧與女性。如同此拍品屬原配之金剛
a row of lotus petals. The ghanta has a gilt handle cast with a face 杵鈴實為難得。此金剛鈴內壁所鑄三字真言「唵啞吽」，為《蓮花生大士心
of Buddha wearing an eight-foliate crown, supporting a band of 咒》中的頭三個字。國立故宮博物院藏一件無款的相似金剛鈴，內壁亦鑄梵
lotus petals and surmounted by a vajra-form finial. The domed- 文「唵啞吽」，原存養心殿，見1999年台北出版《皇權與佛法：藏傳佛教法
shaped bell is decorated at the shoulder with radiating lotus petals
each containing a Lantsa Sanskrit, above a band of horizontal vajra 器特展圖錄》，頁76，圖版8號。香港佳士得於2017年5月31日《妙相圓明–
symbols within beaded borders that are repeated above the splayed 佛教藝術精品》曾賣出一近似並帶宣德款之金剛鈴，拍品2809號。再比一
foot in vertical form. The body is further decorated with a row of 近似金剛杵與金剛鈴，於2013年3月20日紐約蘇富比賣出，拍品258號。
animal masks suspending beaded strings. The interior of the bell is
further decorated with five lotus petals and a symbol.
Vajra: 6æ in. (17.2 cm.) long
Bell: 9¡ in. (23.9 vm.) high
HK$300,000-500,000 US$39,000-64,000

P R O V E NAN C E :
Spiritual practice center in Portland, Oregon, since late 1990s
The vajra (ritual thunderbolt) and ghanta (ritual bell) are important
implements in tantric Buddhism, representing masculine compassion
and feminine wisdom, respectively, and are used in various rituals and
meditations in Vajrayana Buddhism. It is rare to find an original set as
the present lot, and it is interesting to note that the present bell is cast
with Om ah hum, which forms the beginning of the Padmasambhava
mantra, Om Ah Hum Vajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hum. Compare a related
Tibetan ritual bell cast with the same mantra on the interior, illustrated in
Monarchy and Its Buddhist Way, Tibetan-Buddhist Ritual Implements in the
National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1999, p. 76, no. 8. Compare also a similar
example with Xuande incised mark, sold at The Perfect Countenance-
Fine Buddhist Works of Art, Christie’s Hong Kong, 31 May 2017, lot
2809. Further, compare to a similar example of vajra and ghanta, sold at
Sotheby’s New York, 20 March 2013, lot 258.

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