id: 160208 accession number: 1998.120 share license status: CC0 url: https://clevelandart.org/art/1998.120 updated: 2021-06-29 06:36:47.636000 The Assembly of Tejaprabha Buddha, 1878. Korea, Joseon dynasty (1392-1910). Hanging scroll; ink, color, and gold on silk; overall: 223 x 226.4 cm (87 13/16 x 89 1/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mitsuru Tajima 1998.120 title: The Assembly of Tejaprabha Buddha title in original language: 치성광여래도 (熾盛光如來圖) series: series in original language: creation date: 1878 creation date earliest: 1878 creation date latest: 1878 current location: creditline: Gift of Mitsuru Tajima copyright: --- culture: Korea, Joseon dynasty (1392-1910) technique: hanging scroll; ink, color, and gold on silk department: Korean Art collection: ASIAN - Hanging scroll type: Painting find spot: catalogue raisonne: --- CREATORS --- measurements: Overall: 223 x 226.4 cm (87 13/16 x 89 1/8 in.) state of the work: edition of the work: support materials: inscriptions: --- CURRENT EXHIBITIONS title: The Other Side of the Story - Korean Gallery 236 Rotation opening date: 2020-10-30T04:00:00 The Other Side of the Story - Korean Gallery 236 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (October 27, 2020-April 25, 2021). --- LEGACY EXHIBITIONS * Main Asian Rotation (Gallery 237). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (December 23, 2013-January 12, 2015). --- PROVENANCE Mitsura Tajima, Tokyo, Japan, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art date: ?-1998 footnotes: citations: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH date: 1998- footnotes: citations: --- fun fact: The central Buddha of Radiant Light is flanked by two attendant bodhisattvas, Sunlight and Moonlight, each in reverence posture. digital description: wall description: The main deity seated at the center is Tejaprabha, the Buddha of Radiant Light. Blazing beams of light emanating from its celestial body are this deity’s weapon to crush all kinds of calamities. Coincidently, when this painting was created, Korea was experiencing a height of foreign military aggressions, including invasions by the French (1866) and the US (1871). The inscription at the bottom center states that a group of ladies from the royal court commissioned the scroll to wish for the well-being of their families. During the late Joseon dynasty, Korean women became largely marginalized. Nevertheless, they remained important patrons of Buddhist art and architecture, voicing their concerns for their country and families in peril.


Emerald Green: Toxic Pigment

Analysis of The Assembly of Tejaprabha Buddha led to the discovery that the light green pigment—mainly applied to some of the clothing—was not the finely ground malachite traditionally used, but was copper acetoarsenite. Commonly referred to as emerald green, this pigment was discovered in the early 1800s and first commercially manufactured in 1814.

Extremely poisonous, it was often used as an insecticide during the 19th and early 20th centuries. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy, a noninvasive analytical technique, revealed the presence of copper and arsenic. Further analysis of a small sample by Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy confirmed emerald green. With this newly gained information, conservators must handle this work with caution, using gloves and masks. --- RELATED WORKS --- CITATIONS Treasures from Korea: Arts and Culture of the Joseon Dynasty, 1392-1910. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2014. page number: url: Yi, Yong-yoon. “Bokjang Dedicated to Buddhist Paintings of the Late Joseon Period [조선후기 佛畵의 腹藏 연구].” Misulsahak yeongu (2016): 121-154. page number: url: http://www.dbpia.co.kr/journal/articleDetail?nodeId=NODE06649823 Choe, Yeob. “A Study of Subjects in the Inscriptions of Buddhist Paintings [불화 畵記의 畵題 및 명칭 검토].” Misulsa nondan (2017): 205-225. page number: url: http://www.dbpia.co.kr/journal/articleDetail?nodeId=NODE07368154 Galerie Jacques Barrère. Japan = Nihon. Paris, France: Galerie Jacques Barrère, 2019. page number: Mentioned: p. 61 url: Kim, Jeong-hee. Royal House, Power and Buddhist Painting [왕실, 권력 그리고 불화]. Seoul: Sechang chulpansa, 2019. page number: url: --- IMAGES web: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1998.120/1998.120_web.jpg print: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1998.120/1998.120_print.jpg full: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1998.120/1998.120_full.tif