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Saddle (gser sga) Made for Yuthok Tashi Dundrup (g.yu thog bkra shis don grub, 1906–1983)

ca. 1943–47
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 378
This saddle demonstrates beautifully the long tradition of finely made and ornately decorated ceremonial saddles that flourished in Tibet from at least the early fifteenth century until the mid-twentieth century. It is distinguished by elaborate mounts of intricately modeled gilt copper plates, set with turquoise. The saddle was made in Derge (in present-day Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, China), which was famous for centuries for its metalwork. It is significant not only as a fine example of late Derge metalwork but also because it was made for a known patron, the Tibetan nobleman Yuthok Tashi Dundrup (1906–1983), who commissioned the set of saddle and tack while residing in Chamdo and serving as governor of eastern Tibet between 1943 and 1947.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Saddle (gser sga) Made for Yuthok Tashi Dundrup (g.yu thog bkra shis don grub, 1906–1983)
  • Date: ca. 1943–47
  • Geography: Derge
  • Culture: Tibetan, Derge
  • Medium: Copper alloy, iron, gold, turquoise, wood, leather, textile (silk, cotton)
  • Dimensions: 18 1/2 x 24 x 17 in. (47 x 61 x 43.2 cm)
  • Classification: Equestrian Equipment
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Arthur Ochs Sulzberger and Kenneth and Vivian Lam Gifts; funds from various donors, by exchange; Laird and Kathleen Landmann and Bernice and Jerome Zwanger Gifts; and funds from various donors, 2008

  • Object Number: 2008.81a
  • Curatorial Department: Arms and Armor

More Artwork

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Equestrian Equipment Made for Yuthok Tashi Dundrup (g.yu thog bkra shis don grub, 1906–1983), Copper alloy, iron, gold, turquoise, wood, leather, textile, Tibetan, Derge
Equestrian Equipment Made for Yuthok Tashi Dundrup (g.yu thog bkra shis don grub, 1906–1983)
Tibetan, Derge
ca. 1943–47
Saddle from the Surkhang Family, Silver, gilt brass, copper, wood, leather, textile (silk), Eastern Tibetan
Saddle from the Surkhang Family
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Stirrups from the Surkhang Family
Tibetan
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Blade for a Double-Edged Sword (<i>Ken</i>), Miyairi Norihiro Japanese, Steel, silver, Japanese
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Miyairi Norihiro
2013
Two Swords
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