Indian Iron Tantric Lingam

Red lines circle the crown. The rest stays dark, quiet and polished.

This tantric lingam is from India, of indeterminate age, made of quartz crystal with iron oxide inclusions. Hindu devotion treats the lingam as a sign of Shiva rather than a portrait of him, and tantric traditions value the egg shape as a picture of the universe at its beginning. Narrow stripes of red and tan wrap the top of the stone. Below, the body settles into a deep brown with reddish flecks, and bright reflections sit on its smooth curve. It stands 9.75 inches high and measures 7 across.

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