蓮池蒔絵経箱|Sutra Box (Kyōbako) with Lotus Pond

Unknown

early 17th century · Lacquered wood with gold togidashimaki-e, hiramaki-e, and e-nashiji (“pear-skin picture”) · Asian Art

This box with a shallow drawer was made to hold Buddhist sutras and is decorated with the sacred symbol of Buddhist art: the lotus pond. The style of the leaves, stems, and seed heads in the various stages of the plant’s life is reminiscent of early seventeenth-century designs by Tawaraya Sōtatsu (died ca. 1640). The application of the hiramaki-e (flat “sprinkled picture”) and e-nashiji (“pear-skin picture”) sprinkling represents a later type of the Kōdaiji lacquer style.

Artist

Unknown

Date

early 17th century

Medium

Lacquered wood with gold togidashimaki-e, hiramaki-e, and e-nashiji (“pear-skin picture”)

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Mary Griggs Burke Collection, Gift of the Mary and Jackson Burke Foundation, 2015