A BONE KAPALA WITH COPPER COVER AND GILT COPPER ALLOY STAND TIBET, 19TH CENTURY Himalayan Art Resources item no. 8804 7 in. (17.8 cm) high Footnotes: 西藏 十九世紀 嘎巴拉蓋碗 配銅鎏金底座 Provenance Property from a Southern California Estate This kapala, made from a human skull, is mounted on a gilt-bronze base edged with an openwork flaming frieze and supported by three skull-shaped feet on a triangular pedestal. The copper cover is chased with foliate and auspicious emblems, and shows the refined metalwork of Tibetan ritual art. Such vessels were used in tantric practices for rakta (inner) offerings associated with wrathful deities. Comparable examples include one in the British Museum (1905,0519.82) and another in a private collection (HAR 73054). The gilt base exhibits close affinities with the kapala illustrated in Michael Henss, Buddhist Ritual Art of Tibet, p. 258, fig. 331. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing