- Gallery Text
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These small squares of paper are ordination certificates (ninka) distributed to those who committed to the Buddhist precepts, or ethical code of conduct. Each is inscribed with the Chinese character 可 (certificate) above the Sanskrit syllable vam., a mystical sound or “seed syllable” associated with the Cosmic Buddha. Identical certificates distributed by reformist monk Eison (1201–1290) have been found inside another sculpture, dedicated on the 13th anniversary of Eison’s death at his headquarters, the temple of Saidaiji, in Nara. These certificates are an important indication that the Sedgwick Shōtoku was probably commissioned by nuns affiliated with Eison’s movement, which advocated a corrective return to the Buddhist code of conduct (Vinaya) and the inclusion of nuns as well as monks in the Buddhist monastic community, or sangha.
- Identification and Creation
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- Object Number
- 2019.122.14
- Title
- Six Ordination Certificates (ninka) [mounted on a board]
- Classification
- Calligraphy
- Work Type
- calligraphy
- Date
- Kamakura period, datable to circa 1292
- Places
- Creation Place: East Asia, Japan
- Period
- Kamakura period, 1185-1333
- Culture
- Japanese
- Persistent Link
- https://hvrd.art/o/96655
- Physical Descriptions
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- Medium
- Ink on paper
- Dimensions
- H. 30.5 x W. 40.6 cm (12 x 16 in.)
- Provenance
- [Yamanaka Shoji Co., Ltd, Awata Kyoto (1936)], sold; to Ellery Sedgwick, Beverly, MA, (1936-1960), passed; to his wife, Marjorie Russell, Beverly, MA (1960-1971), inherited; by Ellery Sedgwick, Jr., Gates Mills, Ohio, (1971-1991), inherited; by Walter Sedgwick, Woodside, CA, (1991-2019), partial and promised gift; to the Harvard Art Museums.
- Acquisition and Rights
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- Credit Line
- Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Partial and promised gift of Walter C. Sedgwick in memory of Ellery Sedgwick Sr. and Ellery Sedgwick Jr.
- Object Number
- 2019.122.14
- Division
- Asian and Mediterranean Art
- Contact
- am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
- 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
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John M. Rosenfield, The Sedgwick Statue of the Infant Shotoku Taishi, Archives of Asian Art (1968-1969), Vol. XXII / pp. 56-79
- Exhibition History
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Prince Shōtoku: The Secrets Within, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 05/25/2019 - 08/11/2019
- Related Works
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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