Artwork
十二天像(梵天)|One of the Twelve Devas: Bonten
十二天像(梵天)|One of the Twelve Devas: Bonten is a paint painting. It dates from 1346 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This hanging scroll, titled "One of the Twelve Devas: Bonten," is a hand-colored print on paper.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The deity's placement among the Twelve Devas underscores his role in safeguarding the Buddhist dharma and mediating between celestial and human realms.
The hanging scroll portrays Bonten (梵天), one of the Twelve Devas in Japanese Buddhist iconography. As a deva of Brahmanic origin, Bonten is identified with the Hindu creator god Brahma and serves as a protector of Buddhist teachings. He is depicted in a dignified, formal pose, holding a ritual attribute, with the composition emphasizing his celestial status.
The deity's placement among the Twelve Devas underscores his role in safeguarding the Buddhist dharma and mediating between celestial and human realms.
Technique & Style
The work is a fourteenth-century hanging scroll executed on paper, a format typical of Japanese Buddhist art of the period. The figure of Bonten is rendered with ink outlines filled with mineral pigments, producing a vivid yet restrained palette, with brushwork emphasizing flowing drapery and a sense of movement. The scroll measures approximately 76.5 cm in height by 32.1 cm in width, reflecting the standard proportions of devotional hanging scrolls. It is the work of an anonymous hand and is held in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
History & Provenance
The hanging scroll, dated 1346 and created in Japan, portrays Bonten, one of the Twelve Devas, within a Buddhist context. The work is attributed to an anonymous painter and is classified as a painting. It is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, with a recorded inception date of 1346 and dimensions of 76.5 cm by 32.1 cm. The piece exemplifies early Japanese Buddhist art.
No specific accession or inventory number is listed in the available documentation, and the sources do not record any exhibition history for this piece.
Overview
This hanging scroll, titled "One of the Twelve Devas: Bonten," is a hand-colored print on paper. It portrays Bonten, the Buddhist adaptation of the Hindu deity Brahma. The artwork belongs to a larger collection of twelve scrolls, each depicting a distinct heavenly being.
These sets were historically commissioned for their protective qualities, intended to spiritually safeguard various cardinal directions within a designated space.
Artist & collection
