Antique Mythical Tiger Finial Bronze Palanquin Handle 18-19th Century

An antique unusual cast bronze of a Mythical lion beast. Bursting with character, the lion standing foursquare with his long tail curled back on itself. Cast bronze. Tribal Afric...

Two Chinese wood Foo Dogs Incense holder burners. Featuring a pair of highly detailed lion foo dogs, one male and one female which were thought to protect the home from harmful spiritual influences and harmful people that might be a threat. The Foo Dogs...

An antique unusual cast bronze of a Mythical lion beast. Bursting with character, the lion standing foursquare with his long tail curled back on itse...

Tibetan Bronze Horse Door Pull Handle Jumping Male Animal Shape Door Pull. Set of four Flying Horse Door Pull Handle Door Hardware. Brass Temple Door Handle Fertility Symbol, Nepal...

A scarce, high-quality antique Burmese jewel inlaid solid bronze chinthe sculpture. Dating to the late 19th century, likely originating in the Mandalay region of central Burma, the fearsome looking beast depicted in traditional Burmese iconography and important architecture, especially as a pair, the protective temple guardians placed flanking the entrances of Buddhist religious pagodas and monasteries. Burma; circa 1880 PROVENANCE: The estate of Mr. Wesley and Mrs. Suzanne LaFever, Beverly Hills, California. ACQUISITION: We acquired this outstanding example from the reputable auction house, Austin Auction Gallery, Austin, Texas. Fine Estates and Antiques catalog, December 2021 DESCRIPTION: Exquisitely sculpted and cast of heavy, patinated solid bronze, finely detailed and decorated throughout, intricately engraved with scrolling ornamentation and fine detailing work, old nicely aged polished finish developing a warm, mellow patina with highly desirable scattered verdigris, minor inlay losses add to the charming antique character. Stoic in stance, posed at attention proudly squatting back on its haunches, front legs straight, possibly roaring with head up and straight ahead, mouth ajar with teeth and long tongue exposed, ornate armor plating and horned mane, fanciful stylized tail, inset with Myanmar style brilliant colored mirrored glass jewels. BRIEF HISTORY / BACKGROUND: Predating the use of coins for money, brass weights cast in the shape of iconic animals like the Chinthe were commonly used to measure standard quantities of staple items. Chinthe, the Burmese word for lion, while leograph of Chinthe is an artistic highly stylized lion; the rare Southeast Asian Burmese equivalent to Foo Dogs, Japanese Komainu, Tibetan Snow Lion...

This is a good Chinese hand carved bamboo Foo or Lion Dog, sometimes called a temple lion that we date to the 19th Century Qing period. T...

This is a very good antique Chinese foo or lion dog sculpture, sometimes called a temple lions, made of bronze, with excellent detail, dating to the 19th century, Qing period or poss...

This large Chinese bronze censer dates to circa 1860. It is made in three parts, stand, vessel, and lid. The lid has pierced decorative panels with pine trees and a bold Buddhist lion finial for lifting. The censer has lifting handles in the shape of bamboo to each side and again also has panels with pine forests with mythical beasts and side mounts in the form of Buddhist lion mastheads. It is raised on four shaped legs with a beast mask head at the top and sits on the raised and pierced stand. The decoration on this piece is all hand finished with chasing and engraving giving good detail. The censer has a green/brown patina. Circa 1860 Censers are a type of vessel for burning incense. In many cultures burning incense has spiritual and religious connotations which influence the design and decoration of the censer. The lion is one of Buddhism’s most potent symbols. Traditionally the lion is associated with regality, strength and power. It is therefore an appropriate symbol of Buddha who, tradition has it, was a regal prince. As Buddhist priests and monks from India, they brought with them stories of stone Asiatic lions...