Home Altar

In many world religions, home altars are spiritual tables on which sacred images, symbols or texts are placed and honored with offerings made for venerating deities and/or ancestors by family members that generally include light from candles or lamps, incense, flowers, food, and water. In Buddhism, home altars are physical spaces that support spiritual practice, encourage devotees to attain enlightenment and show gratitude to the Buddha for showing the way to enlightenment. Buddha and Buddhist deity statues and other spiritual symbols remind devotees of the qualities of Buddha’s wisdom and compassion and serve to inspire devotees to develop these qualities as they recall Buddha’s teachings.

Chinese Taoist and Popular Religion family home altars or shrines (Kam or Kung) honor ancestors, attract blessings and avert malevolent forces and influences. Ancestor worship is a family affair to communicate with and provide greetings and support to the deceased, engage in prayer, display filial piety and make offerings to ancestor statues and/or tablets. Taoist, Popular Religion and Buddhist deities maybe placed along with images of Taoist and Buddhist priests, deified local heroes and legends. Home altar statues are blessed in an eye-opening consecration ceremony performed by a Taoist or Buddhist priest or monk to imbue with them with chi and give them life. Offerings of candles, incense and foods are placed to attract blessings of fu which they augmented by placing furniture in certain locations and using propitious colors (red and gold attracts the most fu).

In Hinduism, the home altar is the most important part of a household where all family actions and decisions are made, special events are celebrated, and members gather to perform daily prayers (puja) to show reverence and devotion through prayer, supplication, songs, ceremonial worship and rituals. Hindu statues, images of deities who protect the family and engender good fortune, are placed there along with other ritual items of devotion.

Home altars are now viewed as spiritual, and often meditational spaces to celebrate one’s family. Along with spiritual icons or statues, they include photos of loved ones, well-loved mementos or trinkets, hand-written notes, or letters. Additional spiritual elements include candles, crystals, or incense.

  • Sale! Antique Rare Carving of a Huntsman with Rifle, China 16743WHK

    Antique Rare Carving of a Huntsman with Rifle, China 16743WHK

    Original price was: $315.00.Current price is: $275.00.
    H: 9 ”    W:  3.625″    D: 3.5 ”    |  FREE SHIPPING WITHIN CONTINENTAL U.S.!

    This ancestor figure of a huntsman in the round is unique, standing on a  domed pedestal, facing half right holding a flint lock, wearing a hunting coat, a two-level hat,  traditional under- and outer-garment, and thick boots. As the noted scholar on Chinese wood carvings stated, a similar figure like this “unusual and extraordinary ancestral image of a huntsman with a flintlock gun, was the only ancestral image in his vast collection which “depicts the calling of the deceased.”

  • Sale! Antique Rare White Robed Guanyin on a Hǒu, China (16936)

    Antique Rare White Robed Guanyin on a Hǒu, China (16936)

    Original price was: $725.00.Current price is: $495.00.
    H: 15.125”  W: 6”  D: 5”    |   FREE SHIPPING within Continental U.S.

    Rare provincial carving of Guanyin in lalitsana clasping a rosary on a mythical Hǒu that symbolizes righteousness, morality and ushers in peace and prosperity. Small yet powerful, consecrated and mounted on Acrylic base.

  • Sale! Antique Repoussé Vishnu Votive Plaque, H: 7.5" India (5174A)

    Antique Repoussé Vishnu Votive Plaque, H: 7.5″ India (5174A)

    Original price was: $250.00.Current price is: $165.00.
    H: 7.5″  W: 5.75  D: 2.5″     |     FREE SHIPPING WITHIN CONTINENTAL U.S.

    Copper alloy repoussé votive plaque of Vishnu surrounded with head and body aureoles. Symbols of his power as Universe’s Protector include a conch shell, his crown and lotus leaves symbolizing purity, truth, and unfolding of creation.

  • Sale! Antique Seated Ancestor Official, China #16289BME

    Antique Seated Ancestor Official, China #16289BME

    Original price was: $650.00.Current price is: $325.00.
    H: 7.25” W: 4.625” D: 3.5” | FREE SHIPPING WITHIN CONTINENTAL U.S.

    Finely carved ancestor displaying status symbols: official’s attire and hat,  horseshoe chair with feet on pedestal  Masterfully carved and lacquered and is painted on front and back in red  with traces of gilt – all propitious colors of “fu” as a wish for wealth, health, good fortune, long life and long life – that has faded over it years of use into a great patina.

  • Sale! Antique Shiwan Offering Bowl, Peaches and Lotuses, Shiwan, China  (19330)

    Antique Shiwan Offering Bowl, Peaches and Lotuses, Shiwan, China (19330)

    Original price was: $450.00.Current price is: $295.00.
    Ht: 5.5”  Dia: 6” |  FREE SHIPPING WITHIN CONTINENTAL U.S.

    Shiwan stoneware peaches and lotuses on footed bowl auspicious symbols associated with springtime, fertility, long healthy life for many generations and therefore are propitious gifts for birthdays, especially for the elderly.

  • Sale! Antique Shiwan Stoneware Fruit Offering, China (19330)

    Antique Shiwan Stoneware Fruit Offering, China (19330)

    Original price was: $375.00.Current price is: $295.00.
    H: 8.75″  DIA: 6.75 ” | FREE SHIPPING WITHIN CONTINENTAL U.S.!

    Shiwan stoneware glazed sculptures of fruit symbolizing life and new beginnings to place on temple or home altar. They   augment plates of fresh stacked fresh fruit to honor ancestors. These pears symbolize long life.

  • Sale! Antique Small Guanyin on a Radiating Lotus, China (16534)

    Antique Small Guanyin on a Radiating Lotus, China (16534)

    Original price was: $595.00.Current price is: $495.00.
    H: 8.675″  Dia: 4.5″   |   Free SHIPPING WITHIN CONTINENTAL U.S.

    Delicate White Robed Guanyin in meditation on radiating lotus throne. Provincial humble, modest, relatable, yet beautiful matronly figure.

  • Sale! Antique Songzi Guanyin, Bestower of Children, China #16311XOKE

    Antique Songzi Guanyin, Bestower of Children, China #16311XOKE

    Original price was: $2,650.00.Current price is: $1,975.00.
    H: 14.5”  W: 8.25”  D: 5”  |  CALL 213-568-3030 OR EMAIL [email protected] FOR SHIPPING.

    This beautiful provincial Songzi Guanyin is modest, compassionate and humble with lotus leaf crown, unadorned robe and pedestal with simple leaves. The “child giving Guanyin holding her baby resembling the infant Buddha was  probably on a home altar of wealthy couple desiring a (male) baby.

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  • Antique Stone Fu Lion, China (16394JLM)

    Antique Stone Fu Lion, China (16394JLM)

    $195.00
    H: 4.5″  Dia: 3.25″ | FREE SHIPPING WITHIN CONTINENTAL U.S.!

    This hand carved antique stone flu lion is a fun loving benevolent creature as seen in his open mouth with sharp teeth in a fanciful grin with a curled tongue, mischievously twinkling eyes under bushy eyebrows and a compressed rotund body with a very small tail. This is not your refined portrait of an elegant protective beast, it’s just a friendly pet hanging out . He probably lived in the garden of a provincial fun-loving family and is looking for a similar environment where people like old wonderful pieces to remind them not to take themselves too seriously.

  • Antique Taoist Official Holding a Hu Tablet, China (19043QRK) $295

    Antique Taoist Official Holding a Hu Tablet, China (19043QRK) $295

    $295.00

    Taoist images were represented as scholars, sages, heroes, deities, officials and priests. When these images are taken out of context they are very difficult to identify so we describe them in generic terms as a Taoist Officials, Priests or Deities. We identify this image an Official since he holds a hu-tablet associated with officials and…

  • Antique Taoist Official or Priest with Hu Tablet, China (16095DRK) $245

    Antique Taoist Official or Priest with Hu Tablet, China (16095DRK) $245

    $240.00

    Taoist images were represented as scholars, sages, heroes, deities, officials and priests. When these images are taken out of context they are difficult to identify so we describe them in generic terms. Seated  on a backless chair wearing long flowing officials-robes with deep folds, we use the terms  officials/priests for this image, since he his…

  • Sale! Antique Taoist Official with the Elixir of Life #16312BOK

    Antique Taoist Official with the Elixir of Life #16312BOK

    Original price was: $450.00.Current price is: $395.00.
    Ht: 9″ W: 5″ D: 3.5″ | FREE SHIPPING WITHIN CONTINENTAL U.S.!

    During the Ming and Qing dynasties small images of Taoist officials and priests were often shown holding a cup of the elixir of life to place on home altars along with ancestor figures, house gods and other religious images to bring blessings (fu) to the household. By commissioning  figures like this artful carving, families honored their ancestors and met their filial piety duties. Mounted on an acrylic stand.

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