a rare and beautifully painted very large Tibetan monastery thangka of two of the guardian kings of Buddhism. The thangka is in excellent condition and older than it appears as you can see by examining the back of the canvas, made in two parts stitched together (last photo). i estimate it is from the early 1900s. Size 134cm x 98cm Virūḍhaka, Tibetan 'phags.skyes.po (Phakyepo) and Dhṛtarāṣṭra, Tibetan yul.'khor.srung (Yülkhorsung), two of the four Guardian Kings (Lokapala) of Buddhist mythology. They are respectively Guardians of the South and Summer and the East and Spring. They reside in the Cāturmahārājika heaven on the lower slopes of Mount Sumeru, associated with the geographic location of Mount Kailash. Virūḍhaka's army and attendants consist of the kumbhandas and the pretas or yakshas. The kumbhandas are dwarfish, misshapen spirit eating demons who are known for their huge scrotums. They have human bodies and horses heads. The pretas and yakshas are the hungry ghosts. Dhṛtarāṣṭra's followers are the Gandharvas, male nature spirits and husbands of the Apsaras and the vampire demons. Some are part animal, usually a bird or horse. They have superb musical skills, guard the Soma (the drink of the gods) and make beautiful music for the gods in their palaces. If you would like to read more about the iconography of this very interesting thangka, see half way down the page at the following link and read the text under the relevant photos: https://plus.google.com/photos/101356307232634981882/albums/542712655470... Please email me for more information.