
Jing Wen
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Cataloguer

Global Head of Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art

International Director

International Specialist

Head of Sale, Specialist
A GOLD DAMASCENED STEEL BEGTSE CHEN SWORD WITH A GILT COPPER ALLOY SCORPION HANDLE
TIBET, 18TH CENTURY
西藏 十八世紀 銅鎏金天蠍柄鋼鋄金刃大紅司命主劍
The handle is fashioned in the shape of a flattened scorpion that represents the destructive and deadly weapon of Mongolia's primary protective deity Beg tse Chen. It is most likely that this sword handle would have been held by a monk wearing the costume of the deity performing a ritual Cham dance as shown in a black and white photo of a performance in 1930s (Tsultem, Mongolian Sculpture, Ulaanbaatar, 1988).
Published:
Francois Pannier, La Danse Des Morts. Citipati De l'Himalaya, Danse Macabres et Vanites De l'Occident, Paris, 2004, p. 67, no. 34.
Exhibited:
La Danse Des Morts: Citipati De l'Himalaya, Danse Macabres et Vanites De l'Occident, Galerie le Toit du Monde, Paris, 15 September – 30 October 2004.
Provenance:
Eudale Daltabuit, Barcelona, 1990s