{"title":"Tibetan Gau Lockets","description":"\u003cp\u003eA 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat people carried in a gau, and why: \u003ca href=\"\/blogs\/journal\/tibetan-gau-amulet-box-meaning\"\u003eThe Gau: Tibet's Portable Shrine\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eThe two lockets\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003ca href=\"\/products\/tibetan-stupa-locket-relic-shrine-pendant\"\u003eTibetan Stupa Locket\u003c\/a\u003e: 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.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003ca href=\"\/products\/wind-horse-lungta-locket-pendant-sterling-silver\"\u003eWind Horse Locket\u003c\/a\u003e: 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.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eEmpty or consecrated\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBoth lockets can come to you empty, for you to fill, or filled by us. Choose \u003cstrong\u003eConsecrated\u003c\/strong\u003e 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 \u003ca href=\"\/pages\/consecration\"\u003econsecration page\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOr 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eThe stupa and the wind horse\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA 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, \u003cem\u003elungta\u003c\/em\u003e, 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 \u003ca href=\"\/blogs\/journal\/stupa-meaning-tibetan-chorten\"\u003eThe Stupa\u003c\/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"\/blogs\/journal\/lungta-wind-horse-meaning\"\u003eLungta, the Wind Horse\u003c\/a\u003e. We describe these as the tradition does and make no claim that a locket protects anyone.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eQuestions\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat is a gau box pendant?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eDo these lockets really open?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYes. The Stupa's lotus base unscrews to a hollow chamber, and the Wind Horse has a hinged base that latches over an inner chamber.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat can I put inside?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnything 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eIs it made of real silver?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBoth 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 \u003ca href=\"\/blogs\/journal\/tibetan-silver-vs-sterling-silver\"\u003eTibetan Silver vs Sterling Silver\u003c\/a\u003e for why that matters.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"tibetan-stupa-locket-relic-shrine-pendant","title":"Tibetan Stupa Locket Pendant – Opening Relic Shrine in Fire-Gilded Silver","description":"\u003ch2\u003eTibetan Stupa Locket Pendant — Opening Relic Shrine in Sterling Silver\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA stupa that unscrews · Namchuwangden in the niche · ten natural turquoise, hand-set · S925 sterling silver, plain or with traditional fire-gilded 24K gold\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn Buddhist art, the stupa is a small subject. Almost nobody makes one as jewellery, and the reasons are good ones: the form is architecture, not ornament — every course has to sit true on the one below it or the whole thing leans. It is slow, it is unforgiving, and there is no great market waiting for it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWe made one anyway, and we made it to the limit of what we know how to do. If there is a ceiling on what hand-carved silver can reach with this subject, this piece is standing against it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e20 × 20 × 60 MM (0.8 × 0.8 × 2.4 IN) · 38 G \/ 1.3 OZ\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTHE LOTUS BASE UNSCREWS — THIS IS A WORKING RELIC SHRINE, NOT A SOLID PENDANT.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTwo finishes: sterling silver, or traditional fire-gilded 24K gold. Choose above.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTwo ways to receive it: consecrated by us with a fragment of a lama's robe and a prayer scroll, or empty, for you to fill yourself. Both at the same price — the consecration is free.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eChoose consecrated and we seal the chamber for you, so that version is final sale and cannot be returned or exchanged unless it arrives faulty, damaged or not what you ordered. Choose empty and it returns like anything else in the store.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSupplied on a titanium bead chain, approximately 65 cm \/ 26 in, included.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eDesign Philosophy\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e1. It opens, and that is the entire point.\u003c\/strong\u003e A stupa is not a statue. It is a container — the form Buddhism built to hold what mattered. So the lotus base of this one unscrews on a cut thread, and inside is a real chamber. Everything else on this piece exists to make that chamber worth filling.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2. The \u003cem\u003eNamchuwangden\u003c\/em\u003e in the niche.\u003c\/strong\u003e Set into the gilded vase, behind its own arched doorway, is the \u003cem\u003eNamchuwangden\u003c\/em\u003e — the All-Powerful Ten. Ten elements of the Kalachakra mantra, seven letters and three marks, written one into another until they can no longer be pulled apart. That is the meaning of it: the universe outside you and the one inside you were never two things. Placed above a shrine door, it stands for mastery across the ten directions and the three times — everywhere, and always.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e3. Ten seats, ten turquoise.\u003c\/strong\u003e Ten seats are cut into the base and ten natural turquoise are set into them by hand, one at a time. Turquoise is the stone Tibet has worn longest: sky brought down to where a person can carry it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e4. A ring of vajras above them.\u003c\/strong\u003e Directly above the turquoise runs a band of \u003cem\u003evajras\u003c\/em\u003e, the thunderbolt that nothing breaks. They ring the chamber like a wall. Whatever is placed inside is placed behind them.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e5. \u003cem\u003eNanhong\u003c\/em\u003e agate at the door and at the bail.\u003c\/strong\u003e Deep red \u003cem\u003enanhong\u003c\/em\u003e agate is set above the shrine niche and again at the bail — two points of blood-red against gold and silver, marking the two places a hand goes by itself.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e6. The lotus throne at the foot.\u003c\/strong\u003e The whole stupa stands on a carved lotus. The lotus is Shakyamuni's own emblem: it grows up out of mud and arrives clean, and nothing it passed through on the way stays on the flower. Everything above is built on that.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e7. The courses of the stupa, kept true.\u003c\/strong\u003e Stepped plinth, lotus throne, vase, ringed spire. This is the real architecture of a \u003cem\u003echorten\u003c\/em\u003e and not a silhouette of one, and every course is carved and fitted so that the whole 60 mm stands straight.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eConsecration — Included, At No Charge\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA stupa built empty is a model of a stupa. So we will fill this one for you before it ships, and there is no charge for it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConsecrated:\u003c\/strong\u003e we place inside a fragment of a lama's robe together with a written prayer, seal the chamber, and send it to you ready.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEmpty:\u003c\/strong\u003e we send the chamber clean and the base unscrewed, and you fill it. People put in a parent's ashes, a lock of hair, a folded note, a grain of something from a place they will not go back to. If that is why you are here, choose this one — it is the older use of the form, and the better one.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEither way, you choose it above, on this page, before you check out. Nothing to remember afterwards and nothing to email us about.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOne difference is worth knowing before you choose. A consecrated shrine is sealed with its contents for you, and once it has been, it cannot be returned or exchanged — unless it arrives faulty, damaged or not what you ordered. An empty one is covered by our ordinary returns policy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eThe Meaning\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA stupa marks a place where something was kept. That is all it has ever been — a form raised over something worth not losing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWhich is why this one opens. Whatever goes inside is what the piece is about. The silver is only the building.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cblockquote\u003e\u003cp\u003eMay what you carry be worth the shrine you carry it in.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/blockquote\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eMore hand-carved Tibetan work in our \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/tibetan-buddhist-jewelry\"\u003eTibetan Buddhist Jewelry\u003c\/a\u003e collection.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMaterial \u0026amp; Craftsmanship\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eS925 sterling silver, hand-carved\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSterling silver, or traditional fire-gilded 24K gold\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTen natural turquoise, hand-set one at a time\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eNanhong\u003c\/em\u003e agate at the shrine niche and at the bail\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e20 × 20 × 60 mm \/ 0.8 × 0.8 × 2.4 in · 38 g \/ 1.3 oz\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eUnscrewing lotus base over a hollow relic chamber\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTitanium bead chain, approximately 65 cm \/ 26 in, included\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFree consecration on request — a consecrated piece is final sale\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTraditional Fire-Gilding\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cem\u003e(gold finish)\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOur gold goes on the old way, by fire.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWe lay 24K gold leaf over the carved silver, then work an open flame across it, about 900°C at the tip, a small patch at a time, until the leaf settles into the silver and will not lift. Nothing holds it there but heat. There is no glue and no plating tank.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe leaf we use is heavier than jewelry usually gets. It costs more and it takes longer, but the gold stays as long as the silver does. When the firing is done, every edge where gold meets silver goes back under a 40× microscope and is re-cut by hand, so the line between the two metals is as clean as the carving around it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe fire-gilded gold is thick and bonded to the silver, so you can shower, bathe and wear it in hot springs. Pieces set with stones are the exception: take those off before water, to protect the settings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCaring for the stones\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe silver and the gold will take almost anything. The stones will not. Natural turquoise is porous, and it will drink in perfume, lotion, sweat and soap and change colour over time. \u003cem\u003eNanhong\u003c\/em\u003e agate is harder but still dislikes a sharp knock. Keep the pendant away from cosmetics, and wipe it dry after wear. Nothing else is needed.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Kangrinboqe Sacred Art","offers":[{"title":"Fire-Gilded 24K Gold \/ Consecrated - robe fragment + prayer scroll","offer_id":54509036962065,"sku":"BJ0021-1","price":1470.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Sterling Silver \/ Consecrated - robe fragment + prayer scroll","offer_id":54509036994833,"sku":"BJ0022-1","price":1070.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Fire-Gilded 24K Gold \/ Empty - I will fill it myself","offer_id":54700253774097,"sku":"BJ0021-2","price":1470.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Sterling Silver \/ Empty - I will fill it myself","offer_id":54700253806865,"sku":"BJ0022-2","price":1070.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0980\/9179\/4705\/files\/DSC6855.jpg?v=1788095625"},{"product_id":"wind-horse-lungta-locket-pendant-sterling-silver","title":"Wind Horse Locket Pendant – Sterling Silver Tibetan Lungta Gau Amulet","description":"\u003ch2\u003eWind Horse Locket Pendant – Sterling Silver Tibetan Gau Amulet\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLungta, the Wind Horse · A Shrine That Opens · Fire-Gilded 24K Gold · Garnet \u0026amp; Swiss Blue Topaz\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA horse's head in blackened silver. The mane running back the way water runs in wind, every strand cut free of the one beneath it. Gold fire lifting off the brow, between the ears.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAnd then, if you turn it over and lift the catch — it opens.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis is a gau.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFor centuries across the Himalaya, people carried small metal shrines against the body: a hinged box holding something that had been blessed. A scrap of a teacher's robe. Grains of rice that had sat before the Buddha. A folded prayer. The box was never the point. What was sealed inside it was the point, and almost nobody ever saw it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWe built this one in the shape of the animal that carries fortune, and we left the chamber empty on purpose — because it is yours to fill.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003chr\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTHIS PENDANT OPENS · FREE CONSECRATION\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eThe base is hinged and latched. Behind it is a sealed chamber.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAsk us before it ships and we will have it consecrated and filled at the temple — sacred rice offered before the Buddha, a fragment of a lama's robe — at no charge.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eOr leave it empty, and fill it with your own.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIf you ask for consecration, the chamber is sealed for you and the pendant becomes final sale: it cannot be returned or exchanged unless it arrives faulty, damaged or not what you ordered. Left empty, it is covered by our ordinary returns policy.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003chr\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eDesign Philosophy\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e1. A shrine first, a pendant second\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eMost animal pendants are solid. This one is built around a void.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe base plate is hinged at one side and latched at the other, stamped S925 on the inside where only the owner will ever read it. The walls are carried thick enough that the chamber stays sealed and silent — nothing inside it shifts or rattles when you move. Seven millimetres deep, which is a lot for a pendant this size, and all of that depth is there to hold something.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTwenty-eight grams. You feel it against the sternum, and that is the whole idea of a gau: you are meant to know it is there.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2. The mane is where the work went\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eForty-nine millimetres long, and more than half of that is hair.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe strands are cut individually and lifted clear of one another, streaming back from the crest and curling under at the ends, so the whole head reads as a thing caught mid-gallop rather than posed. The jaw is clean, the nostril open, the ear up and turned.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eNothing on this pendant is standing still. That is the hardest thing to get out of metal, and it is the only thing that matters on a horse.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e3. Fire off the brow\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn fire-gilded 24K gold, flames rise from the forehead and lift back over the crest of the mane.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOn the prayer flags, the wind horse carries the flaming jewel on its back. We took the fire off the cargo and put it on the animal — it comes out of him, not off a saddle. It is the single brightest thing on the piece, and it sits exactly where a thought would.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e4. Red at the head, blue at the body\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe bridle is laid in gold across the muzzle and cheek, and where the straps cross on the browband there is a single \u003cstrong\u003enatural garnet\u003c\/strong\u003e — deep red, set close, the colour of something with blood in it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eLower down, a band crosses the body between two gold flame scrolls, and set into it are two \u003cstrong\u003eSwiss blue topaz\u003c\/strong\u003e: cold, faceted, cut. Warm at the head where the animal thinks. Cold at the body where he carries.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e5. Left rough on purpose\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eNothing here is polished smooth. The recesses are oxidised almost to black; the raised planes are brought back by hand; graver strokes stay where they fell. Cloud scrollwork runs through the lower body, and a single curve of polished silver sweeps clear of the mane and around the back of the piece.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTurn it under a lamp and the highlights run along the mane from crest to tip, the way light runs down the flank of something moving. That is what the oxidation is for. A sacred object that looks new looks like a souvenir; this one is meant to look like it has been carried.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt hangs on a Tibetan red cord braided by hand, about 60 cm — roughly 24 inches — with a hand-carved sterling silver bead running on it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eThe Meaning — Lungta\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eRlung-ta. Wind horse. It is printed on every prayer flag strung across every pass in Tibet, and it is not a picture of an animal — it is a picture of a force.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLung\u003c\/em\u003e is wind: breath, current, the air that moves. \u003cem\u003eTa\u003c\/em\u003e is the horse: the thing that carries it. Together they mean the strength of the current you happen to be travelling in. When your lungta is high, doors open before you reach them, people say yes, the timing lands. When it is low, everything is friction — the same effort, nothing moving.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis is not luck, which arrives from outside and leaves again. Lungta is closer to condition: something you can raise, and something you can spend. Flags are hung on high passes precisely to lift it, and they are hung where the wind is strongest.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe horse is a totem, and what it stands for is spirit — the part of a person that runs.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cblockquote\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMay your wind rise.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMay the road open before you ask it to.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMay what carries you never tire.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/blockquote\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eBorn in a Year of the Horse\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2026 is a Year of the Horse — and not an ordinary one.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt is \u003cem\u003ebingwu\u003c\/em\u003e, the \u003cstrong\u003eFire Horse\u003c\/strong\u003e, which falls once every sixty years. The last was 1966. The next is 2086. In the whole of the zodiac there is no year more closely associated with drive, independence and refusing to be led — and it is the year we are standing in.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIf you were born in one of these years, the horse is your sign:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ctable\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth\u003eYear\u003c\/th\u003e\n\u003cth\u003eBegins\u003c\/th\u003e\n\u003cth\u003eElement\u003c\/th\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e1930\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e30 January 1930\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMetal Horse\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e1942\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e15 February 1942\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eWater Horse\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e1954\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e3 February 1954\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eWood Horse\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e1966\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e21 January 1966\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eFire Horse\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e1978\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e7 February 1978\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eEarth Horse\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e1990\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e27 January 1990\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMetal Horse\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e2002\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e12 February 2002\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eWater Horse\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e2014\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e31 January 2014\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eWood Horse\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2026\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e17 February 2026\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFire Horse\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe zodiac year begins at Lunar New Year, not on 1 January. If you were born in January or early February of one of these years, you belong to the sign before it — check the date in the table.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThere is an old custom for your own zodiac year: wear a charm, and wear it on red. This one arrives on a red cord braided by hand in Tibet.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eMaterial \u0026amp; Craftsmanship\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMaterial:\u003c\/strong\u003e S925 sterling silver, traditional fire-gilded 24K gold, natural garnet, natural Swiss blue topaz\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSize:\u003c\/strong\u003e 49 mm long × 29 mm wide × 7 mm deep (1.9 × 1.1 × 0.28 in)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eWeight:\u003c\/strong\u003e 28 g \/ 1.0 oz\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eConstruction:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cstrong\u003ehinged, latching base — opens to a sealed inner chamber (gau)\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eConsecration:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cstrong\u003efree on request — filled and blessed at the temple before shipping; a consecrated piece is final sale\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCord:\u003c\/strong\u003e hand-braided Tibetan red cord, approx. 60 cm (24 in), with hand-carved sterling silver bead\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eStyle:\u003c\/strong\u003e Tibetan wind horse locket pendant, Lungta amulet for men and women\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTraditional Fire-Gilding\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOur gold goes on the old way, by fire.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWe lay 24K gold leaf over the carved silver, then work an open flame across it, about 900°C at the tip, a small patch at a time, until the leaf settles into the silver and will not lift. Nothing holds it there but heat. There is no glue and no plating tank.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe leaf we use is heavier than jewelry usually gets. It costs more and it takes longer, but the gold stays as long as the silver does. When the firing is done, every edge where gold meets silver goes back under a 40× microscope and is re-cut by hand, so the line between the two metals is as clean as the carving around it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe fire-gilded gold is thick and bonded to the silver, so you can shower, bathe and wear it in hot springs. Pieces set with stones are the exception: take those off before water, to protect the settings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCaring for it\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe silver and the gold will take anything. The stones will not. Topaz is hard but cleaves along one plane, so a sharp knock on a table edge is the one thing to avoid, and both stones dull if they sit in perfume, lotion or sweat. Wipe it dry after wear, and if the chamber has been filled, keep it out of water entirely.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Kangrinboqe Sacred Art","offers":[{"title":"Empty - I will fill it myself","offer_id":54552256282897,"sku":"BJ0029","price":1150.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Consecrated - sacred rice + robe fragment","offer_id":67677551853841,"sku":"BJ0029-1","price":1150.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0980\/9179\/4705\/files\/DSC05465.jpg?v=1788361375"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0980\/9179\/4705\/collections\/DSC6855_58cff419-e4a7-4981-92f9-3a407c1c4ef9.jpg?v=1793255983","url":"https:\/\/kangrinboqesacredart.com\/collections\/tibetan-gau-lockets.oembed","provider":"Kangrinboqe Sacred Art","version":"1.0","type":"link"}