Tibetan Gau Lockets

A Tibetan gau (ga'u) is a small portable shrine, a box or locket worn on a cord with something blessed sealed inside; our two gau lockets are hand-carved in S925 sterling silver and really open. One is a stupa whose lotus base unscrews to a relic chamber; the other is a wind horse whose hinged base latches over a sealed inner chamber.

What people carried in a gau, and why: The Gau: Tibet's Portable Shrine.

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  • Wind horse locket pendant in S925 sterling silver with fire-gilded 24K gold flames

    Wind Horse Locket Pendant – Sterling Silver Tibetan Lungta Gau Amulet

    Wind Horse Locket
    $1,150.00
  • Hand-carved S925 Tibetan stupa locket with fire-gilded gold, turquoise and nanhong agate

    Tibetan Stupa Locket Pendant – Opening Relic Shrine in Fire-Gilded Silver

    Tibetan Stupa Locket
    $1,470.00

The two lockets

  • Tibetan Stupa Locket: a 60 mm stupa built course by course from lotus throne to ringed spire, 38 g. The lotus base unscrews to a hollow relic chamber; ten natural turquoise ring the base and red nanhong agate marks the niche and the bail. In sterling silver, or 24K fire-gilded. On a titanium bead chain of about 65 cm.
  • Wind Horse Locket: the lungta of the prayer flags as a horse's head, 49 mm long and 28 g, with 24K fire-gilded flames and bridle, a natural garnet and two Swiss blue topaz. The hinged, latching base closes over a sealed chamber. It comes on a hand-braided Tibetan red cord of about 60 cm.

Empty or consecrated

Both lockets can come to you empty, for you to fill, or filled by us. Choose Consecrated on the product page and we will have it consecrated and sealed for you before it ships, at no charge: a fragment of a lama's robe and a written prayer in the Stupa, sacred rice and a robe fragment in the Wind Horse. A consecrated locket is sealed for you and is final sale unless it arrives faulty, damaged or not what you ordered; the empty version returns like any other piece. How we approach this is on our consecration page.

Or choose empty, and fill it yourself. A parent's ashes, a lock of hair, a folded note: the chamber keeps whatever you choose to put in it.

The stupa and the wind horse

A stupa is a monument raised over something kept, and the outline of a stupa is one of the oldest shapes in Buddhist art. The wind horse, lungta, is the horse at the centre of the classic five-colour prayer flag and stands for the strength of the current a person is travelling in. More in The Stupa and Lungta, the Wind Horse. We describe these as the tradition does and make no claim that a locket protects anyone.

Questions

What is a gau box pendant?

A gau is a Tibetan amulet box: a small metal shrine, often with a window or a lid, worn on a cord or belt with prayers, relics or blessed objects sealed inside. A gau box pendant is that form worn at the neck.

Do these lockets really open?

Yes. The Stupa's lotus base unscrews to a hollow chamber, and the Wind Horse has a hinged base that latches over an inner chamber.

What can I put inside?

Anything small that matters to you: a folded prayer or note, a pinch of ashes, a lock of hair. Or choose the consecrated version and we fill it for you.

Is it made of real silver?

Both are hand-carved S925 sterling silver; the gold on the gilded parts is 24K fire-gilding. Our gold goes on the old way, by fire. See Tibetan Silver vs Sterling Silver for why that matters.