dough mould (zanpar)

carved wood
Tibet, 19th cent.
size: 17,5 x 5 x 3 cm.

Very nice old zanpar, with a variety of groups: deities, animals, torma-offerings, symbols as the Astamangala, etc.
The dough-forms were/are used during offering-rituals. They were NOT, as described in several studies, used as substitutes of the original pre-buddhist animal- or human-offerings.

litt:
Zara Fleming,“The Ritual Significance of Zan par”, in: Proceedings of the 10th Seminar of the IATS, Vol. 13: Art in Tibet, Leiden 2003, p. 161-168.

SOLD