Himalayan Art Resources

Item: Ritual Object - Bowl, Scullcup

ཆོས་ཆས། 法器
(item no. 73054)
Origin Location Himalayan Region
Date Range 1800 - 1899
Lineages Buddhist
Material Bronze
Collection Private
Notes about the Central Figure

Classification: Object/Concept

Interpretation / Description

Skullcup (Skt. kapala): the top of a skull, referring to a bowl made from the top of the human skull and used for specific ritual services related to the wrathful deities of Anuttarayoga Tantra. The skull represents emptiness, the body without a soul - egolessness.

Jeff Watt, 12-2005

Secondary Images
Related Items
Thematic Sets
Collection of E. G. Smith
Collection: Private 9 (Sculpture)
Sculpture: Ivory & Bone Page
Ritual Object: Main Page
Ritual Object: Vessels & Containers
Ritual Object: Skullcup Main Page