An antique 19th Century or earlier tsakli painting in mineral pigments depicting a flayed elephant skin - the elephant was historically used as a weapon of war where its size and strength overcame obstacles in its path.
Wrathful deities are often shown wearing the blood stained skin of a freshly killed elephant stretched across their backs, which is sometimes referred to as 'Indra's skin'. The qualities of wrathful deities which are comparable to those of the wild elephant are revealed in their symbolic activities of bellowing, crushing, tearing, trampling and uprooting. The symbolism of the flayed elephant skin refers to the deity having 'torn the elephant of ignorance asunder'.
2 Tibetan syllables to reverse side . 9.4 x 11.5cm