Group of Heavenly Beings
date: label: Date
content: 14th-15th century
label: Period
content: Nanbokucho period
notes: label: Label
content: The eighteen figures represented in these two paintings (see F1904.313) are all grouped under the Japanese name tenbu, or heavenly beings. The varied figures generally personify forces active in the cosmos; all trace their origins to indigenous beliefs of India and Central Asia. The inscriptions that identify each being are not completely reliable, however, the guardians of the four directions, shown as fierce warriors in the left-hand painting, and the deities of the sun and moon, seen here with corresponding symbols at the top of each painting, are recognizable.
label: Label
content: Other inscriptions indicate that the paintings originally belonged to Sanseizenji, a subtemple of Tofukuji, an important medieval Zen Buddhist center in Kyoto. Artists in the Tofukuji atelier were known for their high-quality iconography and skillful assimilation of influential Chinese Buddhist painting styles.
label: Provenance
content: To 1904
label: Provenance
content: Mr. Shibata, to 1904 [1]
label: Provenance
content: From 1904 to 1919
label: Provenance
content: Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Mr. Shibata, through Bunkio Matsuki (1867-1940), in 1904 [2]
label: Provenance
content: From 1920
label: Provenance
content: Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
label: Provenance
content: Notes:
label: Provenance
content: [1] Bought from the heir of the owner through the Yokohama Specie Bank, with Bunkio Matsuki acting as agent (according to Curatorial Remark 1 in the object record).
label: Provenance
content: See further, See Original Kakemono and Makimono List, S.I. 18, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.
label: Provenance
content: [2] See note 1.
label: Provenance
content: [3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.
label: Collection
content: Freer Gallery of Art Collection
label: Exhibition History
content: In the Shadow of an Apocalypse (October 14, 2017 to October 28, 2018)
label: Exhibition History
content: Religious Art of Japan (December 18, 2002 to January 4, 2015)
label: Exhibition History
content: Telling Tales in Japanese Art (November 23, 1996 to August 14, 1997)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Mr. Shibata (C.L. Freer source)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
place: label: Origin
content: Japan
topic: label: Topic
content: Nanbokucho period (1333 - 1392)
label: Topic
content: Japan
label: Topic
content: kakemono
label: Topic
content: Japanese Art
label: Topic
content: Charles Lang Freer collection
setName: label: Related Online Resources
content: Google Arts & Culture
label: See more items in
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Charles Lang Freer
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: F1904.312
objectType: label: Type
content: Painting
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: CC0
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: Ink and color on silk
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (image): 115.8 x 56.4 cm (45 9/16 x 22 3/16 in)