Tibetan Furnitures – The Greatest Treasure of the Himalayas

According to The Brief History of Tibetans, there was a record of engagement of carpenters to build the Jokhang Temple and Ramoche Temple in 6BC. Through thousands of years’ handworks of the people, Tibetan furniture has become a unique style, which bears artistic shapes, rich colors, and delicate craft. Tibetan Furniture is one of the greatest treasure which dates 1500 years back.

Tibetan Furniture is mostly made up of pine and Himalayan softwoods i.e. Elm, Pine, Poplar, or Cedarwoods. Tibetan Furniture comes in many designs. The furniture is mostly engraved with dragons, animals, images of deities, flowers, and religious symbols.

In the context of today’s, Floral motifs, dragons, and chepaks (Nepali symbol) are very fashionable in terms of styles. Today the best color combination seems to be red background with designs in gold, blue and green. It all fits in perfectly with the entire aura of Tibetan interiors furniture. Most of the furniture collected from Tibetan houses are nearly or completely black in such an order that one cannot see the artwork behind the layers.

Tibetan Furniture is ancient and is simple but gorgeous. Those are decorated with colorful paintings, stones, engraved woods and is also decorated with fur. It is also famous for its decorative patterns, which is believed to bring fortune and treasure in people’s life. It is also known for its vitality, embodied in its design, decoration, and vast colors.

Tibetan Furniture is special of three types:

1. Tibetan Cabinet
2. Tibetan table
3. Tibetan chest

Tibetan Cabinets

Tibetan cabinets are used as dining tables, writing desks, and deposit cupboards, placing food, clothes, quilts, and religious instruments. They’re mostly found in oily appearance because of their many functions. The grease serves as a protective layer to the cabinet.

Tibetan Cabinets with Flowers Design

 

 

This cabinet is from the early 19th century. This cabinet is one of the completely different structure compared to others because of its increased depth. It is painted on three sides, the cabinet features beautiful floral and foliage painting on a light-colored green colored background on the front. There is also a similar painting on the sides but the background green color is a little darker. The borders are decorated with gold favorable symbols painting on a black background.

An orange floral cabinet

This is an 18th century Tibetan cabinet with its four large door panels features beautiful central floral paintings that are surrounded by foliage paintings on an orange colored background. The Brown border of the cabinet is simply decorated with simple floral and foliage pattern painting.

A green floral cabinet

The cabinet is beautifully decorated with a central floral motif that is surrounded by foliage paintings. The border of the cabinet contains simple brown floral and foliage pattern painting on a black colored background.

A beautiful floral cabinet

One of the 19th century Tibetan cabinet containing central fruit paintings surrounded foliage paintings on a silver-colored background, a gold background with floral motifs surrounds the central fruit painting. The border of the cabinet is decorated with simple yellow painted auspicious symbols on a dark brown colored background.

An embossed floral cabinet

This cabinet consists of a central embossed floral painting surrounded by floral and foliage paintings. Borders of the cabinet are simple embossed foliage paintings on a brown colored background.

 A beautiful floral cabinet

This cabinet is decorated with simple floral and foliage paintings on an orange background. This type of cabinet with its open-top panels is used as a kitchen cabinet to store and wooden and porcelain cups and bowls.

A brown and gold floral cabinet

 

This cabinet is beautifully painted with a central gold bird motif which is surrounded by beautiful gold floral and foliage painting on a brown colored background. The Brown border of the cabinet is decorated with endless knot pattern painting.

A beautiful green floral cabinet

This is also one of the 19th century Tibetan Carpet having a central floral painting surrounded by beautiful floral and foliage paintings on a green colored background. The border of the cabinet is bamboo-inspired with simple floral and foliage patterns on a yellow background.

A beautiful large green floral cabinet

This cabinet includes a central floral pattern admits foliage painting with a yellow colored background and a central lobbed cartouche features a central floral pattern in green and pink color. The central cartouche is surrounded by a similar foliage painting. Borders are decorated with simple foliage patterns.

A gold floral cabinet

 The lowered central panel consists of a central flowering floral painting surrounded by beautiful floral and foliage paintings on a gold-colored background. The border is bamboo carved and is simple with a brown background.

A beautiful floral cabinet

This cabinet consists of a beautiful Thangka symbol which is surrounded by floral and foliage painting on a dark green colored background.

A beautiful floral cabinet

 

This beautiful cabinet is decorated with floral in the center and a foliage painting in a green background. The cabinet is beautifully decorated with a central floral and foliage painting on a green colored background, with simple floral and foliage paintings that surround the central painting. The border of the cabinet is decorated with simple patterns on a brown colored background.

A beautiful floral cabinet

This cabinet i.e. 19th century is decorated in a gold-colored background with central floral and foliage painting. The border of the cabinet consists of simple gold foliage patterns on a brown background.

A beautiful red and gold floral cabinet

In this cabinet, a central red flower painting is surrounded by gold floral and foliage on a red colored background. The border of this cabinet consists of a similar gold floral and foliage patterns.

A brown colored floral cabinet

This is a late 20th century Tibetan cabinet. Beautiful floral and foliage paintings are featured in on a brown background. The border of the cabinet consists of a yellow motif on a green-colored background.

A large green floral cabinet

Central floral painting surrounded by green foliage paintings on a dark green background is featured in this Cabinet. Borders are decorated with a  pattern on brown-colored background.

A small red floral cabinet

In this cabinet, there are two central door panels that feature a central flowering lotus painting that is surrounded by beautiful foliage on a red-colored cabinet. Borders include colorful cloud patterns on a red colored background.

A beautiful brown floral cabinet

This is a 19th century Tibetan cabinet from Kham province, eastern Tibet. This cabinet consists of accessible sliding door panels and the top portion of the cabinet is open which probably was used as a Kitchen cabinet. It also includes a central floral painting surrounded by a green foliage painting on a brown background.

A low green floral cabinet

This is a late Tibetan Cabinet from the late 19th century. This cabinet is painted on three sides, on the front of the cabinet consists of simple floral and foliage painting on a yellow-colored background surrounded by a brown border, and the two sides of the cabinet feature similar floral motifs. The border of the cabinet consists of simple floral patterns on a brown colored background.

An embossed floral cabinet

This is one of the late 20th-century cabinets which consists of embossed floral and foliage paintings on a red colored background. The border is black colored decorated with a simple floral pattern painting.

An embossed zee bag cabinet

This is one of the 20th-century cabinets that includes features beautiful embossed gold zee bag, flowers surrounded embossed gold foliage paintings. The four corners of this cabinet consist of the multi-colored gems amidst gold foliage patterns. The borders of the cabinet include gold floral patterns on a brown colored background.

A beautiful large green floral cabinet

This late 19th century large Tibetan cabinet features a central floral and foliage paintings on a green colored background, a red background surrounds the central painting. The border of the cabinet is simply decorated on a black colored background.

A blue floral cabinet

This blue floral cabinet consists of various symbols on a deep blue colored background. The border consists of simple geometric patterns on a green background. The borders of this cabinet are blue colored.

A beautiful picture painted cabinet

This cabinet has four large door panels, each panel painted. All four panels are decorated with paintings of the Tibetan Vase. The four corners are decorated with a geometric pattern on a blue colored background. The border of the cabinet is decorated with simple floral patterns on a brown colored background.

A beautiful cabinet and altarpiece

This is an early 19th-century cabinet and alters piece together. This consists of high-quality gold floral and foliage paintings on a brown colored background with three top accessible drawers.

A beautiful embossed floral cabinet

This is a late 20th century Tibetan Cabinet which features beautiful embossed floral and foliage paintings on a golden-colored background. The border of the cabinet features simple embossed foliage and floral motifs on a black colored background.

Tibetan Cabinets with Auspicious symbols Design

A carved eight auspicious cabinets

This 19th-century cabinet is really rare; this piece is more like a shrine cabinet as it has open space at the top. It features carvings of the “Tashi Dagey” or the eight auspicious symbols. The top of the cabinet is beautifully carved and painted below with the lotus petal pattern. The border of the cabinet is simple with a red background.

A green endless knot painted cabinet

 

This cabinet is completely decorated with a golden endless knot pattern with a painting on a green background. The bottom level contains a cloud pattern painting on a green background.

A large floral cabinet with auspicious symbol painting

This cabinet consists of a central auspicious symbol surrounded by floral foliage painting on a brown colored background. In this piece, each panel features one of the eight auspicious symbols of the Tashi Dagey. The border of the cabinet is decorated with floral and foliage motifs on a red background.

Auspicious symbols painted cabinet

This 19th-century cabinet with its four-door panels each of which feature a central auspicious symbol on a flowering lotus amidst foliage paintings on an orange colored background. The symbols present in this cabinet are auspicious umbrella, parasol, conch, and the holy pot. The borders of the cabinet are decorated with floral patterns on a brown background.

A yellow auspicious symbol painted cabinet

This large 20th century Tibetan cabinet consists of various auspicious symbol paintings which are surrounded by beautiful floral and foliage paintings on a yellow background. The border of the cabinet is decorated with scrollwork patterns on a green-colored background.

A beautiful auspicious figure painted cabinet

It is a late 20th century Tibetan cabinet from Utsang province in central Tibet. This cabinet is painted with a beautiful Tibetan painting. Tibetan Monks receiving and making offerings with floral painting on an orange colored background. The border is consisting of embossed gold foliage painting on a black colored background.

Tibetan Cabinets with Phoenix Design

A beautiful gold phoenix painted cabinet

This cabinet is beautifully decorated with a phoenix in the center which is surrounded by floral and foliage paintings on a gold-colored background. The border of the cabinet is decorated with a simple gold scrollwork pattern painting on a red colored background.

A large animal painted cabinet

This large cabinet consists of two central door panels; each panel includes a central owl on a red background that is surrounded by beautiful floral motifs. Borders are featured with symbols on an orange background.

Tibetan Cabinets with Dragon Design

This cabinet with a central medallion consists of a central embossed gold dragon surrounded by embossed cloud patterns on an orange colored background. Embossed gold cloud pattern painting on a brown background surrounds the central dragon painting. The border of the cabinet is decorated with a brown color background.

An embossed dragon cabinet

This cabinet consists of two embossed black dragons surrounded by foliage and floral patterns in a red-colored background. The border is decorated with black embossed foliage patterns on a red background.

Tibetan Cabinets with Mandala Design

This 19th-century cabinet consists of a beautiful central floral painting that is surrounded by foliage painting on orange color background. The background is black colored and is decorated with simple floral and foliage paintings and thangka paintings.

Kham cabinet

One of the best quality 19th century Tibetan cabinet from Kham province. In this cabinet, The top two larger door panels feature a simple day to day painting amidst foliage painting surrounded by an orange-colored border. Also, the top two larger door panels contain a simple central floral painting amidst foliage painting surrounded by a blue-colored background.

Tibetan Tables

Tibetan tables are always painted in colors or engraved with such patterns as dragons, weird animals, leaves, or bamboos. They are widely used in Tibetans’ daily life and religious ceremonies. Some of the Tibetan Tables are also made in such a way they can be folded. These tables are of historical importance.

Endless knot and Phoenix Tibetan Table

This Tibetan table is a historical table for medication purposes. This table is painted in a red background with a swastika symbol in four corners and an endless knot design in the center having a green color.

Phoenix and face of glory Tibetan Table

This Tibetan Table is decorated with a swastika symbol in four corners in a vast brown colored background with a symbol of phoenix in the middle. This was usually made for the medication in ancient Tibet.

Dragon and Conch shell Tibetan Table

This early 20^th century is made for medication purposes. This table consists of a vast brown colored background with a beautifully made conch shell in the middle. This also has a symbol of a dragon in the lowermost part.

Lotus and Dragon Tibetan Table

In Tibet lotus and dragon both have very great meaning as a symbol. The dragon is known as the symbol of enlightening and the Lotus is the representation of purity. This Table consists of a vast red background with beautifully painted lotus pictures in the middle and dragon is painted in the lower panel. This is used for meditative purposes.

Dragon motif Tibetan Table

Dragons are believed to be the creature of great creative power. It is said that it has the ability to change size at will, at one time covering the skies, another time being invisible. This table consists of dragon painting in the center with brown background color and golden colored symbols in the four corners.

Endless knot and face of glory Tibetan Table

This late 19th-century table features a vast brown background color consisting of endless knots in the center. The endless knot represents the infinite wisdom of Buddha in Tibet.  Also, there is the painting of the face of glory at the lower panel.

Dragon and Phoenix Tibetan Table

In Tibetan culture, Dragon represents enlighten and the phoenix represents peace. This table consists of both dragon and phoenix combined. There’s a vast red colored background with swastika symbols in the four corners and the painting of phoenix in the middle and the dragon in the lower panel.

Phoenix Motif Tibetan Table

Phoenix is one of the most auspicious symbols in Buddhism. This represents peace. In this table, there is a beautifully painted phoenix in the middle with a red vast colored background. This table is usually made for medication purposes.

Tibetan Chest

Tibetan Chest dates back to the 17th or 18th centuries. The chests are painted either directly on the surface, or on a piece of flax covering the surface. Tibetan Chest also features many designs, symbols, and a unique piece of art.

Chest with Arrow Shaped Hinges

This is one of the 18th-century chests from Tibet. This chest consists of large metallic shaped hinges at the center on a red-colored background. It also consists of scroll works yellow-colored at the four corners. In this chest, mineral pigments are used for colors.