Bishamonten Carving lacquer the paper is shaped into

the paper is shaped into cones

This andon likely illuminated the exterior entrance to an important room at Meirinji

sandy surfaces long prized by tea practitioners and flower arrangers alike

To produce light areas

indicating that this piece may have been one of one thousand statues housed in a worship hall at the Kōfukuji Temple in Nara

Bishamonten Carving lacquer the paper is shaped intoBishamonten is a Japanese god of war and a Buddhist protector of shrines and holy places. As one of the Seven Lucky Gods, he protects the great treasure pagoda of Buddhist offerings and divvies these out to faithful believers. Bishamonten is a warrior, an armored war god most often depicted wielding a spear in one hand and a pagoda in the other. This sculpture, from the 1600s, no longer has either. Bishamontens armor is atypical for Japanese warriors