Sutra container, 12th century
Unknown Japaneseexpand_more
Sanage ware; stonewareexpand_more
Mary Griggs Burke Collection, Gift of the Mary and Jackson Burke Foundationexpand_more 2015.79.278a,b
Not on Viewexpand_more
This cylindrical container was an outer case for another container that held a sutra, or Buddhist scripture. The inner case was probably bronze, similar to the example displayed beside it here. Sutras were copied by hand and buried in sutra mounds in order to accumulate merit for the burier as a type of good deed. Now worn down, the round and slightly pointed knob on top of the lid originally took the shape of a hōju, the sacred “wish-fulfilling jewel” often seen in Buddhist imagery.
Exhibitions
Gifts of Japanese and Korean Art from the Mary Griggs Burke Collection
Saturday, September 26, 2015 - Sunday, May 08, 2016
Details
- Title
- Sutra container
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 2015.79.278a,b
- Catalogue Raisonne
- Murase, Art through a Lifetime, no. 583
- Curator Approved
This record is from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator, so may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
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