The Barkhor is the pilgrim circuit around the Jokhang in the old centre of Lhasa, and the shops and stalls along it sell the widest range of Tibetan goods anywhere: prayer wheels and beads, thangka paintings, carpets, textiles, masks, silver and brass, carved wood, bowls, boots, musical instruments, incense and a large quantity of tourist trinkets. It is also, in places, a serious market for old objects, and that is where the rules matter. Chinese law restricts the export of cultural relics, and a piece that is genuinely old may not be allowed out of the country at all.
What you can and cannot take
As a general rule, anything presented as an antique or as a cultural relic may require an export permit, and relics above a certain age and importance may not be exportable under any circumstances. Items made from protected species - ivory, tortoiseshell, certain furs and carved bone from endangered animals - are prohibited, and Chinese customs takes this seriously. Old devotional objects, manuscripts, sculpture and textiles are the categories most likely to be stopped. Modern work, however well made, is a different matter: newly made thangka, carpets, jewellery, clothing and ritual objects can normally be taken home without difficulty.
Buying sensibly
If you simply want good crafts, buy from the workshops and shops that sell new work and say so openly; they are cheaper, the quality is often excellent, and there is no risk. Prices in the Barkhor are negotiable and the starting quote can be several times what is accepted, so compare across two or three shops before committing. For thangka, ask where and by whom it was painted and whether it is a hand-painted piece or a print, which is a completely different product. Beware of anything described as antique and offered cheaply - it is almost always new work aged deliberately.
Practical notes
Foreign visitors travel in Tibet on a permit and with a guide, who is the right person to ask about what can be bought and shipped. Keep receipts, and if a seller claims that an old object can be exported, ask for the documentation rather than accepting the assurance. Payment on the Barkhor is by mobile or cash, and sellers are used to dealing with visitors. Customs checks on departure are thorough, and the consequence of carrying a restricted item is confiscation and possibly a fine, so the safe rule is simple: if it is old and valuable, do not buy it to take home.
