Virūdhaka (Zōchōten), Guardian King of the South, one of the Devarājas (Shitennō), or Four Heavenly Guardian Kings

Gallery Text

Crafted for Japanese Buddhist image halls of the Heian (794–1185) and Kamakura (1185–1333) periods, the objects in this case were once part of magnificent architectural and sculptural ensembles intended to render the Western Pure Land of the Buddha Amitabha physically present in our earthly realm. To be reborn in the Western Pure Land guaranteed the attainment of awakening; the splendors of this distant land were evoked with gleaming, gilded sculptures of Amitabha and his heavenly entourage, including bodhisattvas and angel-like apsarases. Icons of Amitabha were further canopied with stylized flower garlands in gilt bronze.

This period saw the rise to prominence of wooden statuary, which came to surpass bronze as the main material for Japanese Buddhist sculptures thereafter. Placed within the magnificent settings of image halls, Buddhist sculptures themselves became increasingly decorative and included the extensive use of brilliant polychromy; cut-gold leaf patterning (called kirikane) in the drapery; and metal adornments for crowns, headdresses, and accessories. Despite the richness of their robes and settings, the idealized facial expressions of the figures are serene and introspective — characteristics that reflect the aesthetic ideals of the statues’ courtly patrons.

Identification and Creation

Object Number: 124.1979
Title: Virūdhaka (Zōchōten), Guardian King of the South, one of the Devarājas (Shitennō), or Four Heavenly Guardian Kings
Other Titles: Transliterated Title: Shitennō (Devarājas): Zōchōten (Virūdhaka)
Classification: Sculpture
Work Type: figure, sculpture
Date: Heian period, c. 1075
Places: Creation Place: East Asia, Japan
Period: Heian period, Late, 898-1185
Culture: Japanese
Persistent Link: https://hvrd.art/o/210620

Location

Location: Level 2, Room 2740, Buddhist Art, The Efflorescence of East Asian and Buddhist Art

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Physical Descriptions

Medium: Wood with traces of polychromy and gilding
Dimensions: H. 69.7 x W. 30.4 x D. 15.5 cm (27 7/16 x 11 15/16 x 6 1/8 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History: [James Freeman, Kyoto] sold; to Walter C. Sedgwick, Woodside, CA (by 1979), promised gift; to Harvard University Museums, 1979.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line: Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Promised gift of Walter C. Sedgwick in memory of Elizabeth Sedgwick and Marjorie Sedgwick
Accession Year: 2006
Object Number: 124.1979
Division: Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact: am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions: The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request.

Publication History

Dorinda Neave, Lara Blanchard, and Marika Sardar, Asian Art, Pearson Education, Inc. (Boston, MA, 2015), p. 329, ill. 14-6

Exhibition History

Later Chinese and Japanese Figure Painting in Decorative Arts, Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 02/22/1992 - 06/07/1992
Japanese Art of the Heian Period (794-1185), Harvard University Art Museums, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 06/06/2002 - 07/05/2002
32Q: 2740 Buddhist II, Harvard Art Museums, 11/16/2014 - 01/01/2050

Subjects and Contexts

Collection Highlights

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu

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124.1979: Virūdhaka (Zōchōten), Guardian King of the South, one of the Devarājas (Shitennō), or Four Heavenly Guardian Kings