The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 19, 2024

Stone Panel for Royal Tomb

Stone Panel for Royal Tomb

late 700s-early 800s
(676-935)
granite
Overall: 147.3 x 45.3 cm (58 x 17 13/16 in.)
Gift of The Honorable Joseph P. Carroll and Roberta Carroll, M.D. in memory of Mr. Gregory Henderson 1988.249
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

A rat, one of the signs of the East Asian zodiac, carved in this stone panel symbolizes wealth.

Description

This panel shows a figure with a human body and the features of a rat, which is one of the signs of the Asian zodiac, and is likely one of 12 granite panels from a royal tomb. It is probably from Gyeongju—the capital of the kingdoms of the Silla (57 BCE–668) and Unified Silla (688–935) periods—where large royal tomb mounds can still be found. This panel resembles those showing the animal signs of the Korean zodiac from the tomb of General Kim Yusin (595–673) in Gyeongju, the most famous tomb of the period.
  • Reportedly from the Kyongju royal tomb complex, North Kyongsang province
    ?-1988
    The Honorable Joseph P. Carroll and Roberta Carroll, MD, New York, NY, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1988-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • “The Year in Review for 1988.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 76, no. 2, 1989, pp. 30–75. Mentioned: p. 75, no. 227 www.jstor.org
    Kim, Young-Sung. "The Changing Process of Shillas Royal Mausoleums of the Twelve Zodiac Animal signs Stone Circle [신라 십이지신장상 호석 능묘의 변천]." Sogang Journal of Early Korean History 11 (August 2012): 115-154. www.dbpia.co.kr
    Lee, Soyoung, and Denise Patry Leidy. Silla: Korea's Golden Kingdom. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2013.
    Lim, Young-ae. "Prospects of Sculptures in Royal Tombs of Silla from the perspective of Art History and Its Distinct Characteristics [신라 왕릉 조각의 미술사적 조망과 특수성]." The Journal of the Research Institute for Silla Culture 41 (February 2013): 135-162.
  • The Year in Review for 1988. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 1-May 14, 1989).
  • {{cite web|title=Stone Panel for Royal Tomb|url=false|author=|year=late 700s-early 800s|access-date=19 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1988.249