Offering bowl

Museum number:

9-21833

Permalink:

ark:/21549/hm21090021833

Alternate number:

T-16 (original number)

Accession number:

Acc.4737

Description:

One of 52 Small Brass Offering Bowls of approximately the same size.They are used for making daily offerings to the images of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha on a Buddhist altar. Normally seven bowls are offered on an altar. They are typically filled with water, but the water symbolizes the seven offerings: water for drinking, water for washing, anointments, flowers, incense, lamps, and food.See also T-17 and T-115See: Photo T-16

Donor:

Estate of G. Eleanore Murray, Estate of Theos C. Bernard, and Theos C. Bernard

Collection place:

Tibet

Verbatim coll. place:

Tibet

Collector:

Theos C. Bernard

Materials:

Brass (alloy)

Object type:

ethnography

Object class:

Bowls (vessels)

Function:

5.1 Religion and Divination: Objects and garb associated with practices reflecting submission, devotion, obedience, and service to supernatural agencies

Production date:

20th century

Accession date:

March 12, 2004

Context of use:

Ritual Device

Department:

Asia (except western Russia)

Comment:

These are examples of inexpensive brass offering bowls. Most people of even moderate means will use silver plated offering bowls on their altars, and wealthier people will use only pure silver offering bowls. Bowls such as these can be purchased for under $25 per set of seven at local (Berkeley) Indian or Himalayan import shops. The appraiser’s valuation of $200 to $800 per set of seven is rather excessive.

Images: