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Antique Singing & Healing Bowls
A Unique Collection of Rare and Beautiful Sacred and Ceremonial Himalayan Singing Bowls for Sale
Antique Singing & Healing Bowls
A Unique Collection of Rare and Beautiful Sacred and Ceremonial Himalayan Singing Bowls for Sale
Superb Large Manipuri Singing Bowl – F3/C5 and Huge Inscription

Superb Large Manipuri Singing Bowl – F3/C5 and Huge Inscription

SOLD

Antique Manipuri Singing & Fountain Bowl.  F3 & C5 Notes (Heart & Root Chakra)
Weight  2 lb 11 ½ oz (1.23 kilos).   23 x 7.5 cm (approx. 9 x 3 inches)

 

This is a large antique Manipuri Singing Bowl with a good third octave F fundamental when struck with a padded mallet, and a fifth octave C when played around the rim.

 

This is a top quality Manipuri bowl, heavy for its size, with thick even walls and an excellent grooved lip.  The outer surface is subtly and attractively studded with forged hammer marks worn smooth with the passage of time, while the interior is smooth, bright and golden.  The outer wall has decorative incised banding forming a collar below the rim, and the basin has a pair of circles at its centre.

 

This old bowl is in excellent structural condition and is attractive, clean, and virtually free of stains.  However, there are two minor cosmetic issues…a small dent on the underside (it doesn’t penetrate or show on the inside) and a small area on the inside where something mildly corrosive has left a faint impression.  Both of these can be seen in the photos, and neither is of any consequence in my opinion (I mention them only for descriptive completeness).

 

An extraordinary feature of this old bowl is its huge and excellent dot-punched inscription.  This is situated not on the outer wall as one might expect, but on the inside about an inch below the rim where it extends all the way around two thirds of the bowl!  It’s one of the longest inscriptions I have seen on a bowl.  It appears to consist of twelve words, but its meaning unfortunately eludes me.

 

Very few singing bowls carry inscriptions, and their presence is usually confined to older bowls of exceptional quality.  Their appearance confirms the importance of a bowl to a previous owner, and raises its status above the norm.  Inscriptions always add interest and value to a bowl.

 

This is an unusually large and heavy Manipuri bowl with a fabulous inscription and two very good voices!

 

A Tibetan silk brocade bowl cushion, a small padded striker, and a double-ended teak and suede ringer are all included in the price.

 

{audio}manipuri1230f3.mp3{/audio}

Listen: (2 struck notes and 2 played notes)

 

SOLD