Lot 94
TIBETAN PRINTING BLOCK, ACQUIRED EARLY 20TH CENTURY
TIBET
Ancient, African & Oceanic Art and Natural History
Auction: 08 July 2026 at 14:00 BST
Description
carved and incised wood, of square form with a carved loop to the top for hanging; carvings in shallow relief on both sides, possibly used for printing prayer flags, dark patina
Dimensions
26.5cm tall
Provenance
Henry Moubray Cadell (1860–1934), acquired end of 19th or early 20th century, thence by decent
Henry Moubry Cadell (1860-1934) was a renowned Scottish geologist and geographer. Following his career in the Geological Survey he spent the years between 1889 and 1921 travelling throughout Norway (1889), USA (1891), Switzerland (1894), Australia and New Zealand (1895-1896), Russia (1897), India and Burma (1899), Egypt (1902-1903), Mexico (1906), Bavaria (1909), Canada and Alaska (1913), England (1915) and Spitzbergen (1920-1921). During this time, he formed his extensive and eclectic collection that would remain with his family through the next century, as well as documenting the geographical and geological landscape that later became the subject of his lectures and publications. During his lifetime he wrote and published 'The Geology and Scenery of Sutherland' (1896), 'The Story of the Forth' (1913) and 'The Rocks of West Lothian' (1925); he was also a founding member and served as both chairman and president of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society; and in 1932 he was awarded an honorary Doctorate by the University of Edinburgh shortly before his death in 1934.
Footnote
For similar, please see the Rubin Museum of Art, accession number C2006.75.20