A painted scroll with dark paper with many repeating seated figures. All of the figures are outlined in white and in a cross-legged position. At the center is a larger figure encircled by smaller figures in a square outline. The square is surrounded by more figures in rows.
painting proper Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
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painting proper Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College

The painted scroll is a short rectangle shape and has a black background. The scroll is framed by a black and white floral pattern. The scroll is covered with many figures that are outlined in white and sitting cross-legged and have circles around their bodies. At the center of the scroll is a larger figure encircled by smaller figures. There is a square outline around them. The square is surrounded by more small figures in rows. There are two larger figures at the bottom corners of the scroll. The figures repeat to the end of the page.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
2014.139
Title
Womb World Mandala (Taizōkai mandara)
Other Titles
Transliterated Title: Taizōkai mandara
Classification
Paintings
Work Type
hanging scroll, painting
Date
13th century
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, Japan
Period
Kamakura period, 1185-1333
Culture
Japanese
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/323829

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Hanging scroll; gold on silk
Dimensions
painting proper: 90.4 x 79.3 cm (35 9/16 x 31 1/4 in.)
mounting, including cord and roller ends: 192.8 x 101.3 cm (75 7/8 x 39 7/8 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
[James J. Freeman, Kyoto, (by 1976)], sold; to Sylvan Barnet and William Burto, Cambridge, MA, (1976-2014), gift from Sylvan Barnet and bequest from William Burto; to the Harvard Art Museums, 2014.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Sylvan Barnet and William Burto in honor of John M. Rosenfield
Accession Year
2014
Object Number
2014.139
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Publication History

  • Elizabeth ten Grotenhuis, "Bodily Gift and Spiritual Pledge: Human Hair in Japanese Buddhist Embroideries", Orientations, Orientations Magazine Ltd. (Hong Kong, January/February 2004), vol. 35, no. 1, pp. 31-35, p. 33, fig. 2
  • John M. Rosenfield and Elizabeth ten Grotenhuis, Journey of the Three Jewels: Japanese Buddhist Paintings from Western Collections, exh. cat., Asia Society Museum (New York, NY, 1979), pp. 76-79, cat. 14
  • Sudô Hirotoshi, "Uesugi jinja Yonezawa ryôkai mandara ni tsuite", Bijutsushi-gaku (Kawauchi, Japan, 1982), no. 4, p. 52, fig. 13-15
  • Anne Nishimura Morse and Samuel Crowell Morse, Object as Insight: Japanese Buddhist Art & Ritual, exh. cat., Katonah Museum of Art (Katonah, NY, 1995), pp. 96-98, cat. 37
  • Elizabeth ten Grotenhuis, Japanese Mandalas: Representations of Sacred Geography, University of Hawaii Press (Honolulu, 1999), pls. 10-12
  • London Gallery, Ltd. and Ôkura Shûkokan, Buddha's Smile: Masterpieces of Japanese Buddhist Art, exh. cat., London Gallery, Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan, 2000), p. 178-179, cat. 99
  • John Rosenfield, "Escaping Deadly Strife in the Art World: The Barnet and Burto Collection", Orientations, Orientations Magazine Ltd. (Hong Kong, October 2002), vol. 33, no. 8, pp. 45-53, p. 47, fig. 2
  • Sylvan Barnet and William Burto, "Thinking Back, Looking Closely: Reflections on Collecting Japanese Art", Oriental Art, Oriental Art Magazine (London, 2002), vol. XLVIII, no. 2, pp.43-54, p. 48, fig. 4
  • Miyeko Murase and Masako Watanabe, The Written Image: Japanese Calligraphy and Painting from the Sylvan Barnet and William Burto Collection, exh. cat., The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, NY, 2002), pp. 76-83, no. 19
  • Ann Yonemura, Faith & Form: Selected Calligraphy and Painting from the Japanese Religious Traditions, brochure, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery (Washington, DC, 2004), n.p., fig. 2
  • Anne Rose Kitagawa and Yukio Lippit, Marks of Enlightenment, Traces of Devotion: Japanese Calligraphy and Painting from the Sylvan Barnet and William Burto Collection, brochure, Harvard University Art Museums (Cambridge, MA, 2004), p. 5, fig. 4
  • Stephan Wolohojian and Alvin L. Clark, Jr., Harvard Art Museum/ Handbook, ed. Stephan Wolohojian, Harvard Art Museum (Cambridge, 2008), p. 43
  • Francesca Herndon-Consagra, Reflections of the Buddha, exh. cat., Pulitzer Arts Foundation (St. Louis, MO, 2011-2012), p. 5 (color plate); p. 44, no. 19
  • Daniel Grant, "Museum Acquisitions: Top Picks of 2014", Antiques and Fine Art Magazine (2015), XIIV, 1, pp. 128-137

Exhibition History

  • Buddhist Art: The Later Tradition (1993), Harvard University Art Museums, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 08/14/1993 - 01/23/1994
  • Marks of Enlightenment, Traces of Devotion: Japanese Calligraphy and Painting from the Sylvan Barnet and William Burto Collection, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 12/23/2004 - 04/17/2005
  • 32Q: 2740 Buddhist II, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/11/2014 - 05/21/2015; Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/19/2019 - 11/29/2021

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