Tibetan Antique Furniture

Tibetan antique furniture is exquisitely painted and usually religious; Altar Cabinets, Prayer Tables (Choksars) & Painted Tibetan Storage Chests are the most common pieces and would have been used in temples. Often bijou in size, Tibetan antique furniture is perfect for a smaller home whist making a big impact. 

Our genuine Tibetan antiques are restored by our artisan team and are always dated. Pieces date from 250 to 50 years old. Beware of reproduction & repainted Tibetan Furniture which are becoming increasingly common and worth only a fraction of the value despite being sold as antique. 

We hold the largest collection of original antique Tibetan furniture in the UK, although sourcing original pieces is becoming increasingly difficult. Tibetan furniture is painted and usually religious; Altar Cabinets, Prayer Tables (choksars) & Storage Chests are the most common pieces and would have been used in temples. Often bijou in size, Tibetan furniture is perfect for a smaller home whist making a big impact. Beware of reproduction and repainted pieces which are becoming increasingly common and worth only a fraction of the value despite being sold as antique.

Tibetan altar cabinets can be identified by their rich and vibrant painting using traditional mineral pigments and depicting traditional Tibetan Buddhist motifs. Tibetan cabinets were not commonly found until the 18th century - previous to this period, the most common Tibetan furniture were storage chests, choksars or pegams. As individual families became wealthier, they brought the sacred into their homes with home temples. Many Tibetan altar cabinets were commissioned for private homes whilst others were used in monasteries. There were various forms of Tibetan cabinet; chagams are the most common and would have been used as a family altar and for storage of religious scrolls, silk ceremonial clothes, family jewellery and precious yak butter, which is burnt in small lamps during prayers.

Tibetan shrine cabinets are called chosum  (meaning altar) and usually had cut our recessed spaces for deities. They were elaborately painted and carved. In the 20th century, these cabinets became glass fronted and are made to this day. 

Another specialist style of Tibetan cabinet is prayer wheel cabinets. The spinning of the wheel is believed by Tibetans to spread prayers. Whilst most Tibetan monasteries have rows of fixed prayer wheels, occasionally prayer wheels were made with free standing wooden frames and decorated with Tibetan Buddhist deities such as Mahakala or Avalokiteshvara. 

Another known style of antique Tibetan cabinet is the torgam or offering cabinet. These were designed to store torma, offering sculptures made from butter and barley flour produced for the Losar celebrations of Tibetan New Year. Torgam cabinets most often feature scenes of  wrathful deities, scenes of humans being tortured by demons, and human organs as offerings to the gods. 

Tibetan chests can be divided into three categories; straight sided chests, sloping sided chests and leather chests. Tibetan chests are referred to as gam and are one of the earliest forms of Tibetan furniture along with choksars. Tibetan chests are iconic in their vivid painting and brass spear (or arrow) shaped bindings. Tibetan chests were used for storage of religious scrolls, thangka, domestic items, butter lamps and Tibetan Buddhist paraphernalia. They were usually made from cedar, pine or poplar wood with brass or iron fittings. The best quality antique Tibetan chests were painted on leather or cloth bound onto wood with either brass or silver hardware.

Sloping sided chests can be made of either wood or leather and often had a scalloped lid decoration. Leather sloping chests incorporate this scalloped design into the lid and wooden sloping chests are usually carved to create a false lid. This style of chest is the oldest style of Tibetan chest and usually is heavily decorated with iron hardware. This style was first seen in the 14th century. 

Straight sided chests came to prominence in the 16th century onwards and became the enduring style. They feature a traylike lid.

Portable leather chests, whilst less common, did exist and were made from yak leather. The most dramatic of these small leather chests were made with panels of animal fur, usually snow leopard or tiger fur. 

Tibetan choksars (choktse) were multifunctional prayer tables which existed as early as 12th century. The majority of choksar tables were three sided and have fixed legs. Early examples were profusely carved and painted with makara dragon carvings often flanking precious jewels. Around the 16th century, the folding Tibetan table became popular, carving reduced and painting increased. 

Tibetan monks also used a reading desk for reading sutras called a pegam. Pegam tables have a raised back and are vividly painted. 

Taller tables did exist but were very rare. These tall tables were used by high lamas and would have been located next to their thrones. 

Antique tea tables are rare to find, however they have become commonplace in every modern Tibetan home. Few examples can be found in various literature. 

Eastern Tibetan furniture tends to be constructed from heavier woods and has a distinct style of painting. They often feature painted tigers or painted tiger skin. The mythical demon Zeeba (Zipak or Kirtimukha) is also commonly found on Kham chests. The most common framing design is the key fret. Eastern Tibetan furniture tends to take more inspiration from Chinese designs of Qinghai & Gansu provinces. 

Tibetan teapots were used for  serving yak butter tea. Some were purely decorative whilst others were functional. Original Tibetan teapots are highly desirable collectibles and various examples are found in museums across the globe. Antique Tibetan teapots can be divided into three styles. The oldest teapots tend to be constructed from wood or leather with brass fittings. Later 19th century teapots tended to be made from copper or brass with either brass or silver fittings. The best 20th century teapots were made in Nepal from silvered white metal. 

Wooden Wonders: Tibetan Furniture in Secular and Religious Life by Kamansky

Tibetan Furniture: Identifying · Appreciating · Collecting by Chris Buckley

Auspicious by Design by C. Corona

For further information on Tibetan symbolism, see Tibetan Buddhist Symbols by R Beer.