Visitors express reverential admiration for the neatly displayed icons, thangkas, artifacts, statues, different 3D manadalas and other cultural objects on view, many of which date back to the 12th and 15th centuries. the most of collection displayed in the Museum are on loan from the Private Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, offered to him in sincere faith and devotion by many individual Tibetans, who brought them at great risk to their lives while escaping their motherland across the Himalayas in the wake of Tibetan national tragedy.

With the expert services of one highly erudite Tibetan iconographist, and another Tibetan scholar as his assistant, the preliminary work of identifying and cataloguing the museum holdings began in April 1979. It should be mentioned in this connection that even among the community of Tibetan scholars, iconography specialist are few and far between. Tibetans have traditionally viewed objects of worship as having a living entity with a personality of their own, enhanced with an appropriate energy field. This traditional approach created veneration for the objects as living symbols of spiritual power and energy in which any Tibetan could participate for spiritual value fulfillment but without scan thought for the aesthetic value of the objects, admiration for the skill of the creators or interest in the type of materials used in making these objects. In other words, Tibetan traditionally never viewed the objects d'art in the Western artistic and cultural perspective. This partly explains the scarcity of Tibetan scholarship specializing in the art and iconography of Tibet. Naturally, the LTWA was fortunate in acquiring the services of two Tibetan scholars who are known for their special knowledge of Tibetan iconography.

Search for competent Tibetan iconography scholars was carried for almost two years. In the meantime, the Department of Culture suggested a preliminary cataloguing programme under the guidance of the Director of International Academy of Culture, New Delhi. But this was found unworkable since the programme did not include any Tibetan experts who would shoulder the main responsibility of identifying the holdings. The Department of Culture then asked the LTWA to formulae its own scheme for the identification and cataloguing of the holdings. and the decision for its implementation was itself delayed for quite sometime. Because of these intervening circumstances, the preliminary programme of documentation, identification and cataloging, originally scheduled to begin in the initial phase of 1977-1978 financial year could get off the ground only in April 1979, with an initial grant-in-aid of Rs.8000/- already released by the Department of Culture, Govt. of India.

The first phase of the preliminary documentation of the museum holdings was carried on from April to October 1979. With the release of the second installment of Rs.16000/- of the Govt. of India grant-in-aid, the second phase was executed from September 1980 to August 1981.

The work of identifying, documenting and cataloguing the objects d'art involved long period of patient and intelligent study, discussion and research of historical background in Tibetan iconography. It was perhaps for the first time that Tibetan scholars themselves attempted a scientific cataloguing of Museum artifacts. To add to the problem, there are about one hundred items in the holdings with defied identification. These mainly belonged to the category of bla-sku (bronze statues of Tibetan meditational teachers, saintly scholars and founding Gurus of particular sub sects of Tibetan Buddhism). Hordes of Tibetan manuscripts and treatises on iconography and the collected works of various Tibetan masters, from the 12th to 18th centuries, were studied to ascertain the dates, identity, school of art and the significance of the objects. Wherever possible, short descriptions of the background history of the objects d'art has also been prepared, although most of these are still in draft. In some cases, the contents found inside the body of a particular statue or stupa has revealed exciting facts with its dates, identity and other ancient images of sacred deities engraved in small, flat pieces of copper.

Probable identification made of the objects were later confirmed or rejected as the case may be in consultation and discussion with lay and lama scholars visiting the LTWA and its museum. Only when the individual conclusions of majority of scholars consulted concurred, the correct identity of a particular objects was confirmed and finalised. The most valuable help in the correct identification of many of the LTWA's Museum holdings was provided by the late, most lamented skyab-rje Trijang Rinpoche, the revered Guru of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Many Tibetans visiting the LTWA's museum were able to provide very valuable information regarding the background, history and source of several objects, as they agree the original owners who brought the objects to India and offered them to His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

In accordance with the Antiquities and Art Treasures Rules 1973, a total of 215 objects have so far been registered with the Government of India.

Accession and descriptive documentation of 257 bronze statues, 12 old Thangkas, 82 bronze stupas and 18 ritual objects (total 639) is complete. However, dates from written and oral source are yet to be researched for confirming the dates and materials of the objects. A total of 30 items of silver and brass artifacts, Tibetan postage stamps and currency notes have also been accessioned. Preparation of the draft catalogues in English of the 639 documented items is almost complete. 639 photographs including 41 coloured prints of the objects have been prepared employing the services of professional photographic firm.

Admission to the Museum has been strictly laid down: visitors must register themselves and obtain admission cards from the Library Reception. Photography is strickly prohibited as per rules adopted.

These visitors exclude Tibetans, for whom the Museum is a place of worship. Tibetans therefore are not required to register themselves nor obtain admit cards. From among the many artifacts of the collection, the gilded bronze image of Sakyamuni Buddha (from Western Tibet) has been transferred to Drepung Monastery, Bylakuppe, Mysore, on the express order of the Private Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Our grateful thanks goes to the Government of India for their consideration in providing the badly needed grant-in-aid without which this important project would have been impossible take off.

Museum Caretaker Losang Wangdu, who has been with us since the beginning, resigned to return to his parent-monastery Sera at Bylakuppa, South India in 1980. Ven. Sonam Yarphel from Gaden Jyang Tse Monastery and holder of Acharya degree from the Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, Varanasi, was appointed the new caretaker.

For further information contact:

The secretary

Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
Dharamsala - 176215, H.P.
(INDIA)
Phone: +91-1892-22467
Fax:+91-1892-23723
E-mail: ltwa@ndf.vsnl.net.in

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Last updated: 6-Mar-2000