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Box with Design of Benkei and a Bell

Ikeda Taishin Japanese
1862
Not on view
Musashibō Benkei (d. 1189), a historical figure known for phenomenal strength, can be identified here by the temple bell in his right hand and the Japanese halberd—one of the seven weapons with which he is associated—in his left. In his youth as a monk soldier at Enryakuji Temple on Mount Hiei, Benkei took the gigantic temple bell from Onjōji Temple, also known as Miidera, at the foot of Mount Hiei, dragging it with one arm up to the mountaintop compound. On the side of this box, Onjōji Temple appears in the foreground and Mount Hiei in the distance. Zeshin's pupil Ikeda Taishin (1825–1903) decorated the inside of the lid with a rosary design and a priest's Buddhist fringe used for preaching.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Box with Design of Benkei and a Bell
  • Artist: Shibata Zeshin (Japanese, 1807–1891)
  • Artist: Ikeda Taishin (Japanese, 1825–1903)
  • Period: Edo period (1615–1868)
  • Date: 1862
  • Culture: Japan
  • Medium: Mokume-nuri, gold, silver, red, black lacquer, takamaki-e, hiramaki-e
  • Dimensions: H. 2 1/2 in. (6.4 cm); W. 6 in. (15.2 cm); D. 4 1/2 in. (11.4 cm)
  • Classification: Lacquer
  • Credit Line: The Howard Mansfield Collection, Purchase, Rogers Fund, 1936
  • Object Number: 36.100.171a, b
  • Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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Case (Inrō) in the Shape of an Ink Stick with Design of God of Longevity (Jurōjin), Reading beneath a Star Constellation (obverse);Twelve-Character Inscription (reverse), Shibata Zeshin Japanese, Roiro (waxen) lacquer with black hiramakie sprinkled and polished lacquer and takamakie sprinkled and polished lacquer relief; Interior: roiro; Netsuke: lacquer in shape of a worn ink stick; Ojime: black lacquer bead, Japan
Case (Inrō) in the Shape of an Ink Stick with Design of God of Longevity (Jurōjin), Reading beneath a Star Constellation (obverse);Twelve-Character Inscription (reverse)
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Poem Card (Tanzaku) Box with Flower Bouquet, Shibata Zeshin Japanese, Lacquered wood with gold, silver, color, takamaki-e, hiramaki-e, and togidashimaki-e, Japan
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Rising Sun, Shibata Zeshin Japanese, Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk, Japan
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Three Men Looking at Framed Lacquer Drawing, Shibata Zeshin Japanese, Album leaf; lacquer on gold paper, Japan
Three Men Looking at Framed Lacquer Drawing
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Village among Rocks, Shibata Zeshin Japanese, Colored lacquers on paper, Japan
Village among Rocks
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Shibata Zeshin - Box with Design of Benkei and a Bell - Japan - Edo period (1615–1868) - The Metropolitan Museum of Art