Iconographic Drawing of Saturn

12th century

Not on view

Rituals dedicated to the stars and planets were introduced to Japan from China in the ninth century together with Esoteric Buddhist teachings. Doyō (Sanskrit: Shanaishchara), or the planet Saturn, is one of the Nine Luminaries (Sanskrit: Navagraha) of the stellar system as originally defined in early Indian texts that were later incorporated into Buddhism. In China, Buddhist understandings of the heavens were intertwined with Daoist beliefs. Here, the planet is illustrated as an old man with a bull’s head atop his own, dressed in a flowing robe. Now mounted as a hanging scroll, the iconographic drawing once formed part of a handscroll including representations of other celestial bodies.

Artwork Details

土曜図像
Title: Iconographic Drawing of Saturn
Period: Heian period (794–1185)
Date: 12th century
Culture: Japan
Medium: Hanging scroll; ink and color on paper
Dimensions: Image: 21 5/8 x 11 1/8 in. (54.9 x 28.2 cm)
Overall: 50 3/8 x 19 in. (128 x 48.3 cm)
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: The Harry G. C. Packard Collection of Asian Art, Gift of Harry G. C. Packard, and Purchase, Fletcher, Rogers, Harris Brisbane Dick, and Louis V. Bell Funds, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, and The Annenberg Fund Inc. Gift, 1975
Object Number: 1975.268.15
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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