117. * A TEMPLE BANNER DEPICTING WRATHFUL OFFERINGS Tibet, circa 19th century Distemper on cloth Himalayan Art Resources item no. 2858 91 x 713 cm (35 7/8 x 280 3/4 in.) Provenance: Property from a Southern California Estate At the centre of this beautifully illustrated painting, three torma offerings are arranged upon a flayed human skin, placed before the palace of an absent deity. Although the specific deity remains indetermined, the torma in the centre is distinguished by the presence of a garuda and inscribed with the Tibetan seed symbol invoking 'fire' (ram), alluding to an affiliation with the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. In the upper register of the composition, several symbolic elements further contextualise the ritual setting. These include a stylised representation of Mount Meru encircled by four colour coded continents, a lhatse (a cultural monument for a hill deity), and a lamellar armour including the helmet. Such paintings would typically be installed in protector chapels within monastic complexes. However, this particular example extends beyond the conventional function of kangdze paintings, consisting of primarily of pleasing offerings arranged for the deity's enjoyment. The meticulous rendering of the torma offerings and the architectural detail of the deity's palace suggest an instructional intention, likely serving as a visual guide for practitioners or monastic scholars in the proper arrangement of ritual elements associated with this specific deity's practice within the Nyingma school.