Pair of Petite Traveling Gau Shrines

A Buddhist follower may have purchased this pair of Tibetan traveling shrines over a century ago, while on a religious pilgrimage to a temple or holy site. Followers would often donate the shrines to that temple as an expression of their religious devotion, or take the amulets home as mementos of their journey. Each has a central deity that is silver overlay decorated in repousse and exquisitely engraved floral and leaf scroll work typical of Eastern Tibet. The lugs on each side of the shrines hold a strap that was originally fastened to a belt for travel. These shrines are mounted on custom steel stands.