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Painting of the ‘Descent of Amida Sanzon’ (Amida flanked by two bodhisattvas)
Painting of the ‘Descent of Amida Sanzon’ (Amida flanked by two bodhisattvas)
Municipally Designated Important Cultural Property (designated by Setouchi City in 2004)
Made: Unknown
Kōbōji Temple, Henmyōin, Senzu, Ushimado
Color on silk, hanging scroll
84.8×37.3cm
Depicting the descent of the Amida triad in gold on indigo-dyed silk, the figures are outlined with fine red lines, while the eyebrows, eyes, and beard are rendered with India ink. The hair is painted in ultramarine, and the gold clothing is embellished with intricate patterns in gold ‘kindei’ paint. The halo of the central figure comprises a central circle, from which emanates rays of light rendered in gold leaf, highlighted on each side with white pigment. The clouds atop which the triad stand are also drawn with gold paint, while the halos of the secondary figures have also been realized with the same paint.
Depictions of Amida Sanzon in this fashion have been the most common subject seen in Buddhist painting since the Kamakura period (13th century), with many similar examples still surviving. Even though the same image was repeatedly copied, causing the design become rather formulaic, this picture is nevertheless a finely-made, dynamic piece.
