Ritual Ewer

Japan

Not on view

This small gilt-bronze object may have served as a ritual vessel called a kundika in Sanskrit, which held water used during Buddhist ceremonies and is one of the eighteen implements Buddhist monks and nuns need in order to perform their duties. Most East Asian kundika take the shape of long-necked bottles, although some examples have short, bulbous bodies like this one. However, its shape and diminutive size are also reminiscent of a water dropper.

Ritual Ewer, Gilt bronze, Japan

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