id:			137057
accession number:	1961.48
share license status:	CC0
url:			https://clevelandart.org/art/1961.48
updated:		2020-05-19 09:05:11.796000

Sun Bodhisattva (Nikkō Bosatsu), c. 800. Japan, Heian period (794–1185). Japanese nutmeg-yew wood with traces of color and gold; overall: 46.7 cm (18 3/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund 1961.48

title:				Sun Bodhisattva (Nikkō Bosatsu)
title in original language:	日光菩薩像
series:				
series in original language:	
creation date:			c. 800
creation date earliest:		795
creation date latest:		805
current location:		
creditline:			John L. Severance Fund
copyright:			

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culture:	Japan, Heian period (794–1185)
technique:	Japanese nutmeg-yew wood with traces of color and gold
department:	Japanese Art
collection:	Japanese Art
type:		Sculpture
find spot:	
catalogue raisonne: 

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CREATORS

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measurements: Overall: 46.7 cm (18 3/8 in.)
state of the work:	
edition of the work: 	

support materials:


inscriptions:

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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

	title:		Year in Review (1961)
	opening date:   1961-11-01T04:00:00
	<i>Year in Review (1961)</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 1-26, 1961).

	title:		Traditions and Revisions: Themes from the History of Sculpture
	opening date:   1975-09-24T04:00:00
	<i>Traditions and Revisions: Themes from the History of Sculpture</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (September 24-November 16, 1975).

	title:		The Twain Shall Meet
	opening date:   1985-10-30T04:00:00
	<i>The Twain Shall Meet</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 30, 1985-January 5, 1986).

	title:		Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum
	opening date:   1991-06-07T04:00:00
	<i>Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 7-September 8, 1991).

	title:		Honoring Sherman Lee
	opening date:   2009-06-28T00:00:00
	<i>Honoring Sherman Lee</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (June 28-August 30, 2009).

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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS

* <em>Japanese Arts of the Heian Period: 794-1185</em>. Asia House Gallery, New York City, NY (October 5-December 17, 1967) and Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA (January 17-February 25, 1968).

* <em>One Thousand Years of Japanese Art (650-1650) from The Cleveland Museum of Art. </em>Japan House Gallery, New York, NY (March 19-May 17, 1981).

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PROVENANCE

	(Setsu Inosuke 濑津伊之助 [1897-1969], Tokyo, Japan, ?-1961, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
	date: ?-1961
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


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fun fact: 
Japanese nutmeg-yew, or <em>kaya</em>, was used as a replacement for the unobtainable sandalwood of which small Buddhist sculptures imported from China were made.

digital description: 


wall description: 
With its enigmatic gaze Nikko, the Sun Bodhisattva, seems to radiate compassion. The flowing robes and curving posture might have been influenced by Chinese Buddhist sculpture; however, the interplay of the wood grain in this single block of yew, with the artist's subtle carving, is a Japanese innovation. Originally paired with the Moon Bodhisattva, this figure likely flanked a sculpture of Yakushi Nyorai, the Healing Buddha.
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RELATED WORKS

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CITATIONS

	The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966.
	page number: 	Reproduced: p. 274
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1966/page/n298

	Rosenfield, John M. <em>Japanese Arts of the Heian Period, 794-1185</em>. [New York]: Asia Society, 1967.
	page number: 	Reproduced: pp. 8 and 112, cat. no. 11
	url:		

	The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969.
	page number: 	Reproduced: p. 274
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1969/page/n298

	The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978.
	page number: 	Reproduced: p. 369
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CMAHandbook1978/page/n389

	Neils, Jenifer. “The Twain Shall Meet.” <em>The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em>, vol. 72, no. 6, 1985, pp. 326–359.
	page number: 	Reproduced: p. 343, fig. 33
	url:		https://www.jstor.org/stable/25159914

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IMAGES

web:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1961.48/1961.48_web.jpg
print:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1961.48/1961.48_print.jpg
full:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1961.48/1961.48_full.tif