Tibetan prayer flags are among the oldest and most intriguing forms of print media to emerge from the greater Asia region. They represent a form of communication between humans and the spirit world that emerged around the 7th Century. Their bright, bold visual characteristics make them easily identifiable and can be found in the garden of an average home or strung up high in the Himalayas.
Tibetan prayer flags are a form of flag whose design has been printed onto it by means of a carved woodblock. The pictures and symbols on these woodblocks are carved out as a positive of an image and then dipped in ink and pressed onto the flag. This process is repeated using various prints on different coloured cotton cloth - each having its own unique message.
Traditionally the Tibetans used cotton cloth to print on as its durability and colour fast characteristics made it the most desirable print medium available. But, as technology advanced and the prayer flag became increasingly popular, it fell into mass production. This changed two things: firstly, woodblocks gave way to mechanical printing presses and secondly, cotton cloth was superseded by forms of polyester.
The script we see on modern and ancient prayer flags were adapted from ancient Indian scripts and can be loosely categorised as; prayers, mantras or sutras. They convey to the beholder ‘positive intentions for happiness, enlightenment and protection of all beings’.
LINKS:
http://www.fourgates.com/flags.asp
http://www.fpmt.org/shopdata/pflaghistory.htm
http://www.shabdaonline.com/index.php?cPath=35
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibetan_prayer_flag
http://www.prayerflags.com/list.asp?catid=4
http://www.blackyak.co.uk/images/products/buddhist/sm_flag_colours_and_detail_lg.jpg
http://www.moleskinerie.com/images/prayerflag.jpg
http://westwindcollection.com/home/ww1/history_main.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodblock_printing_in_Japan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodblock_printing_in_Japan
http://www.tibetanprayerwheels.com/prayer-flags.html
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