Vajra Flaying Knife

Eastern Tibet, Derge

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 253

This flaying knife is styled in the Indian manner, with a long, hooked steel blade for butchering and flaying. A vajra (thunderbolt scepter), symbol par excellence of Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism, forms the handle. The steel blade issues from a wide-jawed sea monster (makara) hilt, finely damascened with gold and silver.

Vajra Flaying Knife, Steel with gold and silver inlays, Eastern Tibet, Derge

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Vajra Flaying Knife, Steel with gold and silver inlays, Eastern Tibet, Derge
Vajra Flaying Knife, Steel with gold and silver inlays, Eastern Tibet, Derge
Vajra Flaying Knife, Steel with gold and silver inlays, Eastern Tibet, Derge

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