Skip to main content
The Walters Art Museum

Online Collection

Explore the Art Collection keyboard_arrow_down close
  • Explore By...
  • Category
  • Date
  • Medium
  • Creator
  • Places
  • Museum Locations
The Walters Art Museum walters-logo-white
  • Calendar
  • Art
  • Shop
  • Give Now
  • Visit
    • Plan Your Visit
    • Hours
    • Directions & Parking
    • Food, Drink, & Shop
    • Free Admission
    • Tours
    • Accessibility
    • Visitor Promise
  • Experience
    • Virtual Museum
    • Exhibitions & Installations
    • Programs & Events
    • Collections
    • Buildings
    • Baltimore
  • Support
    • Support the Walters
    • Corporate Partnerships
    • Institutional Funders
    • Evening at the Walters
    • Volunteers
  • About
    • Mission & Vision
    • Leadership
    • Strategic Plan
    • Land Acknowledgment
    • Research
    • Policies
Image for The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Zero

Download Image Zoom
Image for The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Zero

Download Image Zoom
Image for The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Zero

Download Image Zoom
Image for The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Zero

Download Image Zoom
Image for The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Zero

Download Image Zoom
Image for The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Zero

Download Image Zoom
Image for The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Zero

Download Image Zoom
Image for The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Zero

Download Image Zoom
  • arrow_forward_ios
  • arrow_forward_ios
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail
The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo Thumbnail

The Teacher Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo

Tibetan (Artist)
15th century
gilded copper alloy with traces of resin
(India, Nepal, and Tibet)

The richly brocaded robe and elaborate headdress of this lama, or revered teacher of Tibetan Buddhism, proclaim his high status. Indeed, the inscription on the base identifies him as Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo, a great scholar of the Kalachakra Tantra who lived in the 14th-15th century. Known from a range of Tibetan historical sources, Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo came from a prominent family and rose to a high office within the Kagyu monastic tradition. In this idealized portrait, probably made after his death, the prayer beads he holds emphasizes his religious knowledge.

Inscription

[Inscription and Translation] On pedestal: Home to Namgyal Dragpa Zangpo, incarnation of the Wisdom Holder

Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.

Ian Alsop, New York and Santa Fe; purchased by John and Berthe Ford, Baltimore, October 1970; given to Walters Art Museum, 2014.

Exhibitions

2012 The Place of Provenance. Rubin Museum of Art, New York.
2001-2003 Desire and Devotion: Art from India, Nepal, and Tibet in the John and Berthe Ford Collection. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore; Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara; Albuquerque Museum, Albuquerque; Birmingham Museum of Art, Birmingham; Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong.

Conservation

Date Description Narrative
Examination Examined for loan.
Share
  • social-item
  • social-item
  • social-item

Geographies

Tibet (Place of Origin)

Measurements

H: 5 1/2 x W: 4 7/16 x D: 3 1/4 in. (13.97 x 11.27 x 8.26 cm)

Credit Line

Gift of John and Berthe Ford, 2014

Location in Museum

Across Asia: The John and Berthe Ford Gallery of Indian, Nepalese, and Tibetan Art

Accession Number

In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.

54.3096

Do you have additional information?

Notify the curator

Hours

  • Wednesday—Sunday: 10 a.m.—5 p.m.
  • Thursday: 1–8 p.m.
  • Monday—Tuesday: Closed

Location

600 N. Charles St.
Baltimore, MD
21201

Phone

410-547-9000

  • Visit
  • Experience
  • What's On
  • About
  • Shop
  • Support The Walters
copyright

The Walters Art Museum

  • Accessibility
  • Privacy Policy/Terms of Use
  • Copyright Info
  • facebook
  • instagram
  • twitter
modal close
Image for
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Tooltip description to define this term for visitors to the website.

zoom-btn zoom-btn preview-download
Image for
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Tooltip description to define this term for visitors to the website.

zoom-btn zoom-btn preview-download
Image for
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Tooltip description to define this term for visitors to the website.

zoom-btn zoom-btn preview-download
Image for
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Tooltip description to define this term for visitors to the website.

zoom-btn zoom-btn preview-download
Image for
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Tooltip description to define this term for visitors to the website.

zoom-btn zoom-btn preview-download
Image for
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Tooltip description to define this term for visitors to the website.

zoom-btn zoom-btn preview-download
Image for
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Tooltip description to define this term for visitors to the website.

zoom-btn zoom-btn preview-download
Image for
tooltip-icon Creative Commons License

Tooltip description to define this term for visitors to the website.

zoom-btn zoom-btn preview-download
  • arrow_forward_ios
  • arrow_forward_ios