Sutra Cover with Flowers
Sutras printed in the accordion-fold format were often encased by covers wrapped in decorative silks. Covers both protected the sacred words and presented the sutras in beautiful envelopes that signaled the importance of the contents within. These examples from the sixteenth century indicate the variety of sutra cover motifs, including some seemingly irrelevant to Buddhist philosophy, such as dragons, phoenixes, or the character shou, meaning longevity
Artwork Details
- 明 織錦經面
- Title: Sutra Cover with Flowers
- Period: Ming dynasty (1368–1644)
- Date: 16th century
- Culture: China
- Medium: Plain-weave silk with supplementary silk weft patterning
- Dimensions: Overall: 13 1/8 x 4 11/16 x 1/4 in. (33.3 x 11.9 x 0.6 cm)
- Classification: Textiles-Woven
- Credit Line: Purchase, Friends of Asian Art Gifts, in honor of James C. Y. Watt, 2011
- Object Number: 2011.221.17
- Curatorial Department: Asian Art
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China
early 15th century
Unidentified artist
16th century
Unidentified artist
late 15th–early 16th century
Unidentified artist
ca. 1551
Unidentified artist
1565
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