AN IRON RITUAL STAFF, KHATVANGA, 16TH-17TH CENTURY Tibet. Well cast, the handle surmounted by a vajra above three citipati skulls in openwork, the octagonal shaft incised with plain linear decoration and tapering to a vajra tip.

Provenance: Austrian private collection.
Condition: Very good condition with extensive old wear, traces of use, and small nicks here and there.

Weight: 539.5 g
Dimensions: Length 34.5 cm

With a fitted modern metal stand. (2)

Expert’s note: A tantric staff, or khatvanga, is a ritual instrument held in the crook of the left arm of advanced Buddhist practitioners during ceremonies. It symbolizes the triumph of wisdom over illusion. The shaft terminates in a vajra, the thunderbolt of instant enlightenment.

Auction result comparison: Compare a related Danda at Bonhams Hong Kong in The Presencer Collection of Buddhist Art on 2 October 2018, lot 174, sold for HKD 75,000.

十六至十七世紀祭祀鐵天杖
西藏，鑄造精良，杖頭由三顆骷髏頭、一隻寶瓶、一個直立的金剛杵或一個噴焰三股叉組成。

來源：奧地利私人收藏。
品相：狀況極好，有大量磨損、使用痕跡和小刻痕。

重量: 539.5 克
尺寸：長 34.5 厘米

現代金屬底座 (2)

拍賣結果比較：比較一件相近的Danda，見香港邦翰思 The Presencer Collection of Buddhist Art 2018年10月2 日 lot 174, 售價HKD 75,000。