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Vajrapani Embroidered Mount with Garuda
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Vajrapani Embroidered Mount with Garuda

Choying Dorje, the Tenth Black Hat Karmapa (Tibetan, 1604–1674), artist · painting 1600s, embroidery c. 1300 · Opaque watercolor, gold, and silver on silk

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.

About this work

The painting depicts the Buddhist protector who holds ( pani ) the thunder bolt ( vajra ) in his right hand. He kneels in reverence and holds his left hand in a gesture of salute. This unusual image appears to have been the vision of a Tibetan monastic patriarch known for creating his own inventive paintings and sculptures. Sewn to the painting are Chinese damask borders and rare embroideries dating to the Chinese Yuan dynasty (1279–1368). They depict man-eagle figures known as Garuda, a form occasionally assumed by Vajrapani.

Cleveland Museum of Art’s own description
Credit lineVajrapani Embroidered Mount with Garuda, painting 1600s, embroidery c. 1300. Choying Dorje, the Tenth Black Hat Karmapa (Tibetan, 1604–1674). Opaque watercolor, gold, and silver on silk; overall: 43.8 x 11.1 cm (17 1/4 x 4 3/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund, 1989.11.b
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