PURBHA RITUEL ET SOCLE EN BOIS SCULPTÉ POLYCHROME TIBET, XIXE SIÈCLEPURBHA RITUEL ET SOCLE EN BOIS SCULPTÉ POLYCHROMETIBET, XIXE SIÈCLE Himalayan Art Resources item no. 205007 The phurbu: 100 cm (39 3/8 in.) high; With stand: 113 cm (44 1/2 in.) highA CARVED WOOD POLYCHOME RITUAL PURBHA AND STAND TIBET, 19TH CENTURY 西藏 十九世紀 木雕加彩普巴杵連座This painted wood phurba is a ritual dagger designed to subdue evil demons. Used in spirit subduing rituals, the triple-sided blade of this three-faced dagger represents the deity Vajrakila, whose lower half mimics the body of the implement itself. Surmounted by a vajra, the vertical arrangement of the three heads is feature more commonly on ritual clubs, or khatvanga, to symbolize both the attainment of clear light reality and the mastery over the three poisons: passion, aggression, and ignorance. Compare the following work's faceted sections and decorative motifs with a set of three phurbus in the Triay Collection (see Spink, Body, Speech and Mind, 1998, p. 79, no. 48)Provenance:Ashencaen and Leonov, London, 2000s