Tibetan Hand Painted Tsakli Ritual Card

White script on a dark ground, framed in red.

This tsakli ritual card was hand painted in Tibet in the early 19th century, in paper and pigment. Tsakli cards are commonly used in Tibetan Buddhist initiation and may carry images or sacred syllables. This example shows white characters stacked on a dark ground within a red border, the strokes bold and uneven. The paper is lightly toned, with small marks of age at the edges. It is displayed in a white mat and slim black frame.

About 18 by 15 inches framed. A quiet, graphic note on a white wall.