Altar offering object depicting the eight auspicious symbols

An openwork, leaf-shaped plate on a stem with a spherical "apple" and a domed stand in the form of a stylized inverted lotus; its silhouette derives from the mandorla-halo of Buddhist sculpture. Set within floral interlace are the eight auspicious symbols of Buddhism (Sanskrit aṣṭamaṅgala, Tibetan bkra shis rtags brgyad, Chinese 八吉祥) — by tradition, gifts offered by the gods to the Buddha after his enlightenment. At the top center, the precious parasol (protection); at the upper left, the treasure vase (the elixir of life and abundance); at the upper right, a pair of golden fish (freedom from the bonds of samsara); at the center left, the victory banner (the triumph of the teaching over obstacles); at the center right, the lotus (purity); at the center, the wheel of the Dharma (the Buddha's teaching); at the lower left, the white conch shell (the far-reaching voice of the Dharma); at the lower right, the endless knot (boundless wisdom and compassion). Above the wheel is a bat with a pearl, a Chinese auspicious motif. By traditional interpretation, the eight symbols correspond to parts of the Buddha's body (the parasol to the head, the fish to the eyes, the vase to the neck, the lotus to the tongue, the wheel to the feet, the banner to the body, the conch to speech, and the knot to the mind).

The object forms a pair with M-652 (an altar offering object depicting the seven treasures of the chakravartin).

It comes from the pre-war (pre-1941) part of the collection of the Kharkiv Historical Museum (in the 1920s to early 1930s, the Sloboda Ukraine Museum named after H. S. Skovoroda).