Guardian Figure: Nio (1200s): Art, History and Details

Guardian Figure: Nio (1200s) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

Paired with a closed-mouth Nio, this figure originally protected the entrance of a Buddhist temple in Japan. Sculpted in an expressive, dynamic style, this figure was created using several pieces of wood carefully joined together. This imposing figure was originally painted, though is substantially faded due to weathering. The carved wooden bases for the two guardian figures on display are modern replacements.

Object facts

• Title: Guardian Figure: Nio
• Date: 1200s
• Culture: Japan, Kamakura period (1185–1333)
• Type: Sculpture
• Technique: chestnut and cypress
• Dimensions: Overall: 167.9 cm (66 1/8 in.)
• Collection: Japanese Art
• Department: Japanese Art
• Accession number: 1972.158.1

Collection credit

Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• Lee, Sherman E. “The Year in Review for 1972.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 60, no. 3, 1973, pp. 63–115.
• Nippon no bijutsu (November 1972), no. 78.
• Shōichi Uehara. "Wooden Statues of Vajrapāni." Kobijutsu 古美術 (December 1972), no. 39, pp. 111–113.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.