Extraordinary Tibetan 19th Century Antique Inlaid Silver Mixed Metal 18" Prayer Wheel

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Introduce an incomparable aura of sacred history to your interior architecture with this exceptionally large, museum-quality, authentic 19th-century Tibetan handheld … Read more Introduce an incomparable aura of sacred history to your interior architecture with this exceptionally large, museum-quality, authentic 19th-century Tibetan handheld prayer wheel (Mani Khorlo). The oversized five-inch diameter cylindrical drum is a masterwork of mixed-metal "white silver", skillfully blending silver and nickel accented by rich brass and bronze repoussé bands. Elevating its visual opulence, the sacred scroll inside its yak hide canister features the characteristic block-style or flowing scripts of the Himalayas, strictly speaking, a Tibetan Buddhist mantra scroll. Built with thick, deeply chased, hand-hammered coin-grade silver and nickel alloy frames, the central body features a hand-soldered band and an elaborate, removable lower cap, with the finial crowned by an ornate, stylized lotus bud. Crucially, the ancient, original Tibetan paper mantra scroll remains perfectly intact and beautifully preserved inside the canister core, showing only the expected fragile edge-browning consistent with its 19th-century origins, revealing the ultimate collector asset: an original, ancient, tightly wound paper mantra scroll perfectly coiled around its hand-forged internal iron spindle. Designed for active devotional use, the weighted cylinder rotates smoothly on its iron core and yak-bone collar via the balanced, lotus-shaped brass pendant with an attached counterweight yak leather strap. The mixed-metal silver, nickel, and brass components exhibit an irreplaceable, deeply layered dark patina with minor, localized areas of historical oxidation, reflecting authentic antiquity. Traditional Tibetan geometric patterns and protective iconography, adorned with hand-cut, organic Himalayan turquoise and authentic red coral cabochons, gracefully transition into a beautifully worn, hand-lathed hardwood handle. The handle exhibits a pinned spliced brass rim at the lower end, and hand-hammered rim at the top, meeting the deeply patinated, naturally worn wood from decades of rhythmic ritual manipulation by monastic hands, displaying a profound, beautiful surface smoothing, rich coloration from decades of handling, and an authentic age patina that bridges timeless Eastern mysticism. See less