Kalamandu
Shakya Atelier

Vajrayogini

Fire-gilt copper, dancing, painted face

Sale priceNPR 348,000Regular priceNPR 410,500

Quantity

KLM-VAJRAY-GT-09

The dakini in her dancing posture, one leg raised, curved knife in the right hand and skull cup at the heart in the left, khatvanga across the shoulder. Face painted red, hair gilt and flaring. Fire-gilt body with coral in the bone ornaments.

What to expect from this order

  • Cast by hand in a named workshop

    Made by Shakya Atelier in the Kathmandu valley, and paid for directly. About the workshop

  • Dispatched in two working days

    Tracked the whole way. Anything over 10 kg travels by freight on a booked slot. Shipping and delivery

  • Nothing charged now

    Pay the courier on delivery, or by wallet or bank transfer once we have confirmed the piece. How paying works

  • 14 days to change your mind

    Return it within 14 days of delivery, in the condition it arrived in. Refund policy

The detail

Measurements, materials and how this one was made — the facts a photograph cannot carry.

Deity
Vajrayogini
Finish
Fire-gilt 24k gold
Posture
Dancing
Inlay
Coral

Material
Gilt copper

Technique
Fire-gilding
Origin district
Lalitpur (Patan)
Artisan
Shakya family workshop, Patan

Width
10.5 cm
Length
8.7 cm
Height
22.9 cm
Weight
2.9 kg

Vajrayogini is the patron deity of the Newar Buddhist community and has been cast in this valley longer than almost anywhere. The raised leg and the backward tilt make it the least stable wax model in the range; it is built around an internal armature that burns out with the wax.

Cast by the lost-wax method the Newar workshops of Patan have used for roughly a thousand years. The artisan models the figure in wax, encases it in a clay and rice-husk mould, fires the mould so the wax runs out, and pours molten metal into the void that is left. The mould is broken to release the casting, so no two pieces from it can ever be identical. Chasing, filing and detailing the face are then done entirely by hand — the slowest part of the work, and the part that decides whether a statue is any good.

The face is hand-painted in gold and mineral pigment and is the most fragile part of the piece. Do not touch or wipe the face at all. Dust the body with a dry, soft cloth, always working away from the face. No water, no polish, no solvent. Keep out of direct sun, which fades the pigment, and away from damp.

In-stock pieces are dispatched within two working days and tracked all the way. Pieces over 10 kg travel by freight on a booked slot rather than by parcel carrier.

You can return it within 14 days of delivery, in the condition it arrived in. If you changed your mind you pay the return postage; if it was faulty or damaged in transit, we do. The refund policy sets out how, and the shipping policy covers costs and timings.

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