The Vajrayogini Sculpture in a Densatil Monastery style have been grouped together in a unique gallery. There are more examples of the Densatil Vajrayogini which are not as yet on the HAR Website.
The Realm of the Medicine Buddha depicted as the first painting of the Blue Beryl set of compositions has been added as a separate gallery of images on the HAR website.
The scene has the Medicine Buddha at the center of a palace in the middle of a medicinal plant garden. Immediately surrounding the Buddha are Indian gods, rishis and Buddhist monks, including Arya Nagarjuna. These various figures are the legendary and human characters involved with the development and propagation of Indian Aurveda medicine in the 1st millennium of the common era. In the 2nd millennium this transformed again into Tibetan medicine.
The Blue Beryl painting sets main page has been updated with additional images and links.
The Blue Beryl is a 17th century commentary to he 11th century Four Medical Tantras text. The Blue Beryl paintings are a set of 79 educational explanatory compositions created and commissioned by the 3rd Desi Sanggye Gyatso (1653-1705), regent to the 5th Dalai Lama. The first fifteen of the Blue Beryl paintings have a register at the top which presents the four topics of [1] Medicine Buddha, [2] Four Tantras Lineage, [3] Yutog Nyingtig Lineage and the [4] Deities and Protectors of the Yutog Nyingtig. The image here is created by layering the strips of register found at the top of the first fifteen compositions into a single image. The strips have been combined to make it easier to follow the sequence and read the name inscriptions. (Only the first fifteen compositions of the set have a top register).
A masterworks gallery for the 'Black Cloak' Bernagchen Mahakala has been added.
A masterworks gallery for the meditational deity Simhamukha has been added.
A masterworks gallery for the meditational deity and protector Ekajati has been added.
A gallery for the mountain goddess Tashi Tseringma Masterworks has been added.
A gallery for Gold Ground Masterworks has been added.
A gallery for Red Ground Masterworks has been added.
A Gelug Protector Painting Set with seven compositions in total. The primary donor for the set was Purbu Chog. An inscription on the back of the Shri Devi painting gives the names of four donors: Purbu Chog Ngagwang Champa (1682-1762), Lobzang Dargye the 49th Ganden Tripa, Champa Yeshe and Lobzang Trinle (1697-1761). Only three paintings from the set are currently known however the identity of the missing paintings and additional donors are known from the writings of Purbu Chog.
A gallery for Black Ground Masterworks has been added. This is only a small initial selection. More examples will be added.
A gallery for Densatil Sculpture Masterworks has been added. The gallery includes known sculpture having belonged to the Tashi Gomang Stupas along with objects that are in a Densatil style.
The Bases with Legs Sculpture Page has been updated with additional images.
The Densatil Monastery Sculpture Page has been updated with additional images.
Bodies in Balance, The Art of Tibetan Medicine. Rubin Museum of Art. March 15, 2014 - September 8, 2014.
"The first major exhibition to present the origins, history and practice of a millennium of visual history, Bodies in Balance explores the guiding principles of the Tibetan science of healing represented in medical paintings, manuscripts, and medical instruments. A multi-media installation shows how Tibetan medicine is used today. The exhibition invites visitors to relate what they discover to their own lives through interactive experiences within the galleries and throughout the Museum including Café Serai and the shop." (Read the full article).
Also see the Art of Tibetan Medicine on the HAR Website for up to date information and related links.
The central figure of this painting set is Sonam Wangpo, the 24th Sakya Tridzin (1559-1621 [TBRC P2664]). Sonam Wangpo has been identified in two compositions. The nephew of Sonam Wangpo, Jamyang Tutob Wangchug (1588-1637 [TBRC P790]), is repeated in several compositions. Tutob Wangchug was not a Sakya Throne Holder, he declined the position in favour of his younger brother Ngagwang Kunga Wangyal, 27th Sakya Tridzin (1592-1620), followed by the youngest brother Jamgon Ameshab Kunga Sonam, the 28th Sakya Trizin (1559-1621 [TBRC P2664]).
Tibet and India,
Buddhist Traditions and Transformations. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. February 8th to June 8th, 2014.
"This exhibition singles out two periods when the Buddhist Tibetan tradition drew from outside influences to develop new vocabularies of form. In the eleventh and twelfth centuries, after a period of political and religious disruption, contact with the great monasteries of North India led to considerable exchange. Looking from the Indian perspective, the exhibition examines how esoteric imagery, texts, and Vajrayana ritual practices contributed to reshaping the complex religious landscape of Tibet. Today, contemporary Tibetan artists are again addressing and incorporating ideas central to the current global reality, in an effort to recontextualize long-standing core Buddhist ideals. The exhibition will include five loans and eighteen objects drawn from department holdings." (Read the full article).
University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology: "Founded in 1887, the Penn Museum has always been one of the world's great archaeology and anthropology research museums, and the largest university museum in the United States. With roughly one million objects in our care, the Penn Museum encapsulates and illustrates the human story: who we are and where we came from. As a dynamic research institution with many ongoing research projects, the Museum is a vibrant and engaging place of continual discovery, with the mandate of research, teaching, collections stewardship, and public engagement - the four "pillars" of what we do." (From the Penn Museum website).
The Tamashige Tibet Collection, Tokyo, Japan, is almost exclusively comprised of paintings from the Tibetan regions. More than half of the paintings belong to sets with several sister compositions found in other museum and private collections. There is no specific religious theme, time period or painting style emphasized in the collection but rather an eclectic group spanning all of Tibet from the 14th to 19th centuries. Mr. Tamashige built the collection between 1987 and 2001.
