Qing Dynasty
Overall height: 12.5cm
Length: 8.6cm
Width: 4.6cm

Made of gold of 80% fineness, the Buddhist niche has a glazed front, with the edges adorned with intertwined lotus branch motifs. The top, bottom and the sides of the niche are all embellished with curling grass patterns. There's an insert door at the back that is also surrounded by edges with intertwined lotus branch motifs. There are 31-character Chinese inscriptions and those in Manchu and Tibetan languages. There's a thin-waist gold base engraved with lotus petal motifs at the bottom of the niche. And there's a flower carved on the base as an offer to the Buddha. A small Buddha figure is enshrined in the niche. The head of the Buddha is gold traced and he holds a vajra stick in the right hand.

The high-quality Buddhist niche is small and exquisite. It is often carried by Tibetan monks and Buddhism believers for worshipping whenever and wherever possible to show their devoutness.