Artwork Page for Monju as a Child

Details / Information for Monju as a Child

Monju as a Child

稚児文殊像

1400s–1500s

Japan, Muromachi period

(1392–1573)
Medium
hanging scroll; ink and color on silk
Measurements
Overall: 61.7 x 38.7 cm (24 5/16 x 15 1/4 in.)
Credit Line
Bequest of Maud Eells Corning 1992.385
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print

Description

In this work, a young boy dressed in Japanese court costume holds a sword and sacred text, symbols of wisdom carried by the bodhisattva Monju, and rides a lion, also associated with that Buddhist deity. As boy and lion pass beneath a sketchily inked tree, the lion pauses, right foreleg suspended in midair, and the pair looks back. The relatively naturalist posing and sensibility of the painting, as well as the boy’s attire, suggest the possibility that he is a manifestation of a Wakamiya, a youthful kami (a Japanese deity), whose Buddhist counterpart is Monju.
A hanging scroll depicts the bodhisattva Monju, a child with a light skin tone, riding a large, brown lion with its mouth open and teeth bared. Monju sits atop a white cloth, looking downward while holding a vertical sword. On the left, a faint tree trunk appears against a muted brown background. The composition is framed at the top and bottom by dark fabric borders featuring gold floral patterns.

Monju as a Child

1400s–1500s

Japan, Muromachi period (1392–1573)

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