A zitan figure of Shadbhuja Mahakala, Tibet, 18th century

Collection of Taoufik Bendahou.

Acquired in Paris, 2014.

This polychromed wooden votive sculpture depicts the main protector of the Shangpa Kagyu and Gelugpa traditions of Tibetan Buddhism: a particular form of Six-Armed Mahakala who stands in a lunging posture holding a curved knife and skullcup in his primary hands before his chest, a mala made of skulls and a staff with a skull finial in his upper two hands, and damaru (drum) and lasso in his lower two hands, as he tramples a supine Ganapati. The figure is carved into this small votive stele made of zitan, a rare wood with a woodgrain so subtle that there's no need to add decorative, colored lacquer, although some gilding and organic pigment have been added here. Due to the slow growth of zitan trees, the wood has always been scarce and is now practically extinct.