We recently returned from a trip to Burma and visited the markets and antique shops of Yangon. Predictably, we found that the availability of genuine antiques has diminished significantly since our last visit. Long gone are the days of seeing tables and shelves filled with exotic offerings from Burma’s past including opium weights, bronze bells, lacquerware, Nat spirit statues, architectural pieces, Buddhist art and various other fascinating objet d’art.
We did manage to bring back a small collection of artifacts including a particularly charming Nat spirit wooden statue, well known to the Burmese as Mei Wunna, the flower-eating ogress of Mount Popa, along with a few antique bronze bells, a beautifully decorated antique lacquerware kun-it, a rare antique tattoo pen and a small collection of the much sought after handmade Chin textiles, including a very rare antique heirloom piece.
Featured below is a collection of images from Yangon as well as the various artifacts from Burma that are currently available in the gallery. If you find any items that pique your interest please email us at info@sabaidesignsgallery.com
It’s no secret that authentic Asian antiques are becoming increasingly difficult to locate. Older antique dealers in Thailand often reminisce about times long gone by when you could buy Burmese opium weights in kilo bags for a song and old Burmese lacquerware was stacked up to the ceiling in their shops. The popularity of Asian antiques in America and Europe over the past few decades has led to a steady decline in supply in the region. Rare styles of opium weights, antique bronze bells, larger antique bronze sculptures and artefacts in general are all requiring a little more time and effort to track down. That being said, we recently returned from a trip during which we acquired several impressive new items from Burma and Thailand that we would like to feature.
Antique Burmese Lacquerware
Featured here are two large Burmese lacquerware vessels known as pyi-daung that were once used to carry offerings of rice to Buddhist temples and in the middle, a rare antique gold gilded Buddhist manuscript known as kammavaca that was presented to the Buddhist temple when a young monk ordained. View our Lacquerware Collection
Burmese Opium Weights
Here are three rare forms of Burmese ‘opium weights’ dating back to the 1600s. These bronze zoomorphic figurines were used to weigh a variety of materials including precious metals, spices and medicines. They have become popular collectibles and represent a bygone era in Burmese history with production ceasing during the 1800s while under British rule. View our Opium Weight Collection
Antique Bronze Bells
Three antique bells from the 19th century- the spherical bell is an elephant bell while the other two are pastoral bells, once used to help locate grazing livestock. Like virtually all Burmese utilitarian objects, they were created with mindfulness towards aesthetics. View our Bronze Bell Collection
Antique Bronze Buddha Statues
The three Buddha statues seen here are from Thailand and all are seated in the ‘earth witnessing posture’ representing the moment of the Buddha’s enlightenment when he touched the ground to bear witness to his awakening to Absolute Reality. The first two statues are in the Chiang Saen style of northern Siam while the third is in the Sukhothai style, characterized by the flame-like halo. View our Buddhist Art Collection
Antique Thai Ceramics
The antique ceramic pieces here are from Thailand – the blue glaze pieces are in La Na style (former northern kingdom) while the celadon plate is from 16th century Sukhothai, which was a major hub of ceramic production at the time.
Please click on the photos to be redirected to the listing with further details. The items featured in this blog represent just a few of the antiques from Burma and Thailand listed in our gallery so browse our collections and if there is anything of particular interest to you please email us at info@sabaidesignsgallery.com
