Curious Whatsit from Another Land

[mojjax]

I just got this at a garage sale an hour ago . The canister part is hollow and I found the piece of paper inside . I'm not sure what type of metal is is , but it looks like silver . Any ideas ?

 

[Sheldon J]

A prayer scroll, the faithful usually the priest assistant walks and spins it, this looks Asian so it could be budist... as a religious artifact silver is a definite possibility unless it is a tourist trinket, then it could be something else...

 

[Mackaydon]

Yes, I think it's called a Tibetan Prayer Wheel; many were produced by Tibetan refugees for the tourist trade, but I have no idea if this is a souvenir or the real thing.
Don....

 

[goldencoin]

Yes, prayer wheel

HH
-GC

 

[bradyboy]

I might agree with the prayer wheel - but
Why is the a chain attached to the wheel?
Brady

 

[Mackaydon]

Perhaps the purpose of the chain is to hold the weight at the end. The purpose of the weight and chain might then be to increase the centrifugal force of the rotating wheel--to aid in its spinning.

 

[mojjax]

Perhaps the purpose of the chain is to hold the weight at the end. The purpose of the weight and chain might then be to increase the centrifugal force of the rotating wheel--to aid in its spinning.

Yes , the weight is lead - it spins quite nicely .

Thanks for all the help on the ID . I give it green check

I got it for 50 cents

 

[ivan salis]

it is a buddhist (tibetian) prayer wheel * --the weight on the chain helps tp keep it spinning once started --each complete turn of the prayer wheel is thought to be the same as saying the prayer written on the paper normally contained with the prayer wheel --as such its a "holy item" -- a tibetian religious article .

 

[trikikiwi]

Yes, agree with all of the above

Tibetan prayer wheels (called Mani wheels by the Tibetans) are devices for spreading spiritual blessings and well being. Rolls of thin paper, imprinted with many, many copies of the mantra (prayer) Om Mani Padme Hum, printed in an ancient Indian script or in Tibetan script, are wound around an axle in a protective container, and spun around and around.
http://www.dharma-haven.org/tibetan/prayer-wheel.htm

Mike