These are a complex and uniquely Tibetan concept and are usually constructed by teams of monks for a festival or religious event.

They are not entirely made from butter, however, being constructed on frames of wood and leather, to which are applied barley flour and butter dough. They are then painted. Some were truly gigantic being as high as a three storey building. After the ceremony they are destroyed. In this they are like sand mandalas such as the well known Kalachakra Sand Mandala, painstakingly constructed over many days from different colored grains of sand before being swept away at the end of the ceremony. The symbolism behind the destruction of such works is based on the illusory nature of things, even those we cherish most.

Please visit our online Tibetan Sculptures shop.

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