Not my expertise or typical thing, but I found--find--this antique Buddhist thanka painting stunningly gorgeous and completely full of delights, and so, of course! (I purchased it from a favorite shop in NH and know it came from a private collection rich in Southeast Asian treasures.) My guess from just a bit of research is that the central figure may be the first Dalai Lamai, Gendun Drub (b.1391), though this is really a guess, and I'm sure many of you know better. For me it is all about vitality and radiance and charming details of the painting itself--the glorious greens and blues and reds and golds; the patterns animating the robes and trees and clouds; the faces and gestures of the figures, and menagerie of animals along the bottom too. What a world of wonders.
20 3/4" x 14 1/2" and in beautiful antique condition, 18th/19th c. I believe, color ever richer in person, gouache on cloth, signed (I presume) on reverse. Not at all fragile.
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