Pair of Guardian Kings (Niō)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Pair of Guardian Kings (Niō)

Date
1200s
Medium
Chestnut and cypress wood
Culture
Japan, Kamakura period (1185–1333)
Department
Japanese Art
Institution
Cleveland Museum of Art
Object ID
146709

From the Cleveland Museum of Art record

These wrathful protectors of Buddhism would have once stood within the sides of the main entrance gate to a temple. One has an open mouth that intones the sound ah, and symbolizes the beginning, or life.One has a closed mouth that intones the sound un, and symbolizes the end, or death. This is one of a pair of guardian kings, or Nio. Their fierce expressions and postures indicate their protective function.

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Provenance & credit

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Credit line
Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund
Provenance
Buddhist temple in Shiga Prefecture, Japan | ?–1972: (Yanagi Fine Art Shop, Kyoto, Japan, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art) | 1972–: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Part of a LinkedCulture topic

  • Representative object from the topic Buddhist and Hindu Iconography
    Buddhist and Hindu Iconography

    These objects are connected by their representation of sacred figures and deities from Buddhist and Hindu religious traditions across Asian cultures, including sculptures, paintings, and ritual objects depicting buddhas,

    183 objects from 5 institutions

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