牡丹に唐獅子図絵馬 「奉掛絵馬慶 安二年三月廿五日」|Ema (Votive Painting) of Chinese Lion and Peony Tree

Executed in 1649, the ema employs ink and opaque mineral pigments applied to a wooden plank support, with the lion and peony rendered in bold, flat washes and outlined in fine ink lines typical of early Edo-period votive panels.

The composition is organized around a large peony in full bloom to the right and a recumbent Chinese lion below, its shaggy mane articulated with short, layered brushstrokes that suggest volume while retaining a decorative flatness. Stylistic features include the use of tarashikomi for petal edges and a restrained palette dominated by mineral reds, greens, and indigo against the natural wood ground.

Created in Japan in 1649, this votive painting bears the specific dedication date of the 25th day of the third month of the Keian era. The work was produced by an anonymous artist using ink and color applied to a wooden panel. As an ema, it was commissioned for religious devotion, likely intended to be hung at a shrine. The piece is currently held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The painting is a 1649 ink and color work on wood depicting a Chinese lion amid peonies, created in Japan and now held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It is classified as a religious votive painting, reflecting devotional practices of the Edo period. Scholarship emphasizes its role within anonymous East Asian devotional art, situating it in the broader context of 17th-century Japanese religious imagery.

The work’s composition and iconography have been studied for insights into cross-cultural exchange, particularly the transmission of Chinese lion symbolism into Japanese visual culture. Its stylistic analysis contributes to understanding anonymous painter workshops in Edo-period Japan.

This ema (votive painting) is a wooden board featuring a Chinese lion and a peony tree, executed in ink and color. Dated to 1649, it was intended for hanging at a shrine as a prayer plaque.