Description
This portrait of Fujiwara no Muchimaro (680–737), a grandson of Fujiwara no Kamatari (614–669), includes an image of Buddha Dainichi Nyorai above his head. By situating the image of Dainichi there, this painting would seem to assert that Muchimaro is an avatar of Dainichi. In the same way that kami could be identified with Buddhist counterparts, powerful humans could also be seen as manifestations of Buddhist deities. A similar painting is at Eizanji in Nara, of which Muchimaro is known as the founder. It was once a branch temple of Kōfukuji, the Fujiwara family temple.
Provenance
(Heisando Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art) (?–1983); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1983–)
Accession Number
1983.5
Medium
Hanging scroll; ink, color, gold, and cut gold on silk
Dimensions
Overall: 141.3 x 87 cm (55 5/8 x 34 1/4 in.); with knobs: 210.2 x 112.4 cm (82 3/4 x 44 1/4 in.)
Classification
Painting
Credit Line
Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund