First mentioned in mid-sixth-century writings, Bodhidharma (Damo), the monk credited with founding the Zen (Chan) sect of Buddhism, has been alternately described as Central Asian and South Indian. This porcelain sculpture depicts him seated in a monastic costume, referencing a legend that he spent nine years meditating in a cave to attain enlightenment.
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Artwork Details
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明晚期 德化窯白瓷達摩坐像
Title:Bodhidharma in meditation
Period:Ming dynasty (1368–1644)
Date:17th century
Culture:China
Medium:Porcelain with ivory glaze (Dehua ware)
Dimensions:H. 11 3/4 in. (29.8 cm); W. 7 1/2 (19 cm); D. 5 1/2 in. (14 cm)
Classification:Ceramics
Credit Line:Gift of Mrs. Winthrop W. Aldrich, Mrs. Arnold Whitridge, and Mrs. Sheldon Whitehouse, 1963
Accession Number:63.176
Fujian Province
Mrs. Winthop W. Aldrich, Mrs. Arnold Whitridge, Mrs. Sheldon Whitehouse , (until 1963; donated to MMA)
New York. China Institute in America. "Blanc de Chine," September 19, 2002–December 8, 2002.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Secular and Sacred: Scholars, Deities, and Immortals in Chinese Art," September 10, 2005–January 8, 2006.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Anatomy of a Masterpiece: How to Read Chinese Paintings," March 1–August 10, 2008.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Art of Dissent in 17th-Century China: Masterpieces of Ming Loyalist Art from the Chih Lo Lou Collection," September 6, 2011–January 2, 2012.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Children to Immortals: Figural Representations in Chinese Art," August 9, 2018–January 3, 2021.
Valenstein, Suzanne G. A Handbook of Chinese Ceramics. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1975, pl. 115.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Asia. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987, p. 94, pl. 58.
Suzanne G. Valenstein. A Handbook of Chinese Ceramics. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1989, p. 204, fig. 197.
Dunne, Claire. Carl Jung: Wounded Healer of the Soul: An Illustrated Biography. New York: Parabola Books, 2000, p. 204.
Ayers, John. Blanc de Chine: Divine Images in Porcelain. Exh. cat. New York: China House Gallery, 2002, p. 79, cat. no. 30.
Leidy, Denise Patry. How to Read Chinese Ceramics. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, [2015], pp. 105–107, cat. no. 30.
Editorial Assistant Rachel High speaks with Denise Patry Leidy, Brooke Russell Astor Curator of Chinese Art, about her book How to Read Chinese Ceramics and the continued relevance of Chinese porcelain today.
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