A very few men are smiths, making silver or gold ornaments, repairing guns, kettles, saddles, etc. ; but the best silversmiths are found in the lamaseries The land of the Lamas: notes of a journey through China, Mongolia and Tibet, William Woodville Rockhill, 1891.

Silver Saddlery Ornaments

Country of origin : Tibet, Derge, Kham

Dating : 18/19th century

Materials : Silver

Total length : 23.5 cm

The city of Derge ( སྡེ་དགེ ), located in present-day Sichuan Province, China, was once the central town of the Kingdom of Derge, nestled in the eastern part of Tibet, the Kham region. The city was renowned as a center of crafts, particularly for its printing and the production of a wide variety of bronze, iron, silver, and gold objects.

William Woodville Rockhill, in The Land of Lamas, describes the town as follows:

" Derge est spécialement connu, dans tout le Tibet, pour l'excellence de son travail du métal. Les sabres, fusils, pots à thé, poudrières, sceaux, cloches, etc... fabriqués ici atteignent des sommes importantes lorsqu'ils sont offerts à la vente ; leurs selles sont aussi les meilleures du Tibet de l'est, celles de Litang prenant la seconde place. J'ai un grand nombre d'objets en métal provenant de Derge, qui seraient attribuables à n'importe quel ouvriers, mais j'en ai vu certains d'une extrême finesse artistique et au rendu parfait. "

Pierced ironwork from the Derge region: saddle (17th-18th century), chamfer (16th-17th century), bridle element (15th-17th century), belt element (18th-19th century) (Metropolitan Museum of New York, top left: n°1997.214.1 ; top right: n°2008.291; bottom left: n°2005.73 ; bottom right: n°2014.626.2)

The examples above consist mainly of dragons moving among foliage and clouds, themes that are also found on our silver examples. It is likely that these two ornaments were decorative elements intended for bridles, saddlery or leather goods.

The dragon (འབྲུག, Druk), in Tibetan Buddhism, is a solitary and wise creature, symbolizing enlightenment and good communication. We also find the gankyil (དགའ་འཁྱིལ་), or wheel of joy, which illustrates the inseparability of the base, the path and the fruit in the initiatory path.

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