Seated Arhat

1688–95

Not on view

Arhats (Japanese: rakan) are disciples of the Buddha who have achieved enlightenment, serving as role models for Zen monks. They are often portrayed with highly individualized facial expressions, suggestive of an extreme ascetic lifestyle. This statue is one of five hundred created over nearly ten years by the monk-sculptor Shōun Genkei for the Ōbaku temple Gohyaku Rakanji, originally on the eastern outskirts of Edo (present-day Tokyo).

Artwork Details

Object Information

Overview

Provenance

Exhibition History

References

松雲元慶作　羅漢像
Title: Seated Arhat
Artist: Shōun Genkei (Japanese, 1648–1710)
Period: Edo period (1615–1868)
Date: 1688–95
Culture: Japan
Medium: One of a set of five hundred; wood with lacquer, color, and gold leaf
Dimensions: H. 33 1/2 in. (85.1 cm); W. 28 3/4 in. (73 cm); D. 26 1/4 in. (66.7 cm)
Classification: Sculpture
Credit Line: Fletcher Fund, 1927
Object Number: 27.69
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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