Dimensions: Height 4,5 cm Wide 3,7 cm Depth 1,4 cm
Weight: 20,2 grams

The wealth deity Jambhala is depicted seated upon a lotus base, his corpulent body expressing abundance. His right hand is lowered in varadamudrā, holding the citron fruit, while his left rests on his knee cradling a mongoose, the jewel-spitting animal that symbolises prosperity. He wears ornate jewellery and a crown, the details simplified yet clearly defined within the compact format. The figure is framed by an arched prabhāmaṇḍala decorated with a row of beaded lotus petals.

The surface shows traces of red pigment applied during ritual worship, now darkened with age, while the stoneware body has developed a smooth, timeworn patina.

Jambhala is venerated in Tibetan Buddhism as the guardian of wealth and prosperity. The mongoose (nakula), once an emblem of Kubera, here transformed into Jambhala’s attribute, symbolises the conquest of greed: it vomits jewels not hoarded wealth, emphasising the bodhisattva ideal of generosity and the transformation of material abundance into spiritual merit.

This small, portable votive image would have been used on a household shrine, serving as an intimate object of devotion, protection, and daily offerings.