Reproduced here are exquisite paintings of the historical Buddha, bodhisattvas, historical and mythological figures, protectors of the Buddhist law, tutelary deities, as well as rare bardo paintings, black background scrolls, and mandalas. The selection of these sacred paintings which date from the late twelfth to the early twentieth centuries, was made on the basis of their stylistic or iconographic rarity--and their sheer beauty. Very few reproductions of these masterpieces have been published before.