Tibet Collectibles

Tibetan Buddhist art, brightly colored and elaborately detailed, performs more than one function in Tibetan religious life. Devotional images are often used as the center point of rituals or ceremonies. Art is also used as a teaching tool by telling the story or the teachings of the Buddha or other deities (gods). Tibetan art, however, is mainly used as a tool for meditation. The meditator visualizes themselves as the image of the Buddha or deity in order to embody the qualities of the chosen subject.

The conch horn symbolizes that Buddha has a rich voice to teach Buddhism, and his voice can reach far away. According to scriptures of Buddhism, when Sakyamuni taught dharma, his voice reached far away like the sound of a conch shell horn. There are left turning conch shells and the right turning of conch shells. In Tibetan, right turning conch shells are more popular.

The appearance of furniture in the Tibetan society began in the 14th century. Previous to this all religious and domestic activities occurred at floor level. Furniture was first used in monestaries and then found use in the home as well. There are six types of Tibetan furniture; the Guam (chest or box), the Chhagam (cabinet), the Pegam (box for religious books), the Thorgam (cupboard for storing religious implements), the Yangam (cupboard for storing luck related objects), and the Chogtse (table or platform).