Conference by David C. Andolfatto, Associate Researcher, CRCAO (UMR 8155, École Pratique des Hautes Études), Associate Researcher, NHDP (Universität Heidelberg).

Tuesday 20 February 2024 at 6 PM at Maison de l’Asie, 22 avenue du Président Wilson, 75016 PARIS.

Tsha tsha.s are small objects in raw or cooked clay, produced between India and Mongolia since the second half of the first millennium. Made during Buddhist rituals generally aimed at the accumulation of merit, tsha tsha.s (Tibetan term) can also be made in a funerary context. In the latter case, crushed bone fragments, ashes from the pyre or nails of the deceased can be incorporated into the clay during its preparation. The conference will discuss the manufacture and use of tsha tsha.s in various Himalayan contexts. The preliminary results of archaeometric analyzes aimed at identifying the presence of human remains in tsha tsha.s from the collections of the musée du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac will then be presented.