Tibetan Trunk Depicting the Four Harmonious Friends

Four animals, stacked in order of age. The story is older than the trunk.

This trunk depicting the Four Harmonious Friends comes from Tibet and dates to the 18th century, painted wood with iron mounts. The Four Harmonious Friends, an elephant, monkey, hare and bird who cooperate to reach the fruit of a tree, are a beloved Tibetan Buddhist image of respect and cooperation, and painted chests like this stored household and monastery goods. The scene sits in a lobed medallion on a red ground, with large flowers filling the corners and small emblems scattered around. Iron straps bind the edges, and the lid is dark. Thirty-one and a half inches long, 15.75 high.

Cooperation remains a good idea. Storage, too.