Sun Bodhisattva (Nikkō Bosatsu) (c. 800): Art, History and Details

Sun Bodhisattva (Nikkō Bosatsu) (c. 800) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

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

Bodhisattvas are beings who have attained enlightenment but delay entry into Buddhahood until they have fulfilled their varied vows to aid others along the path to enlightenment. The flowing robes and curving posture of this figure were inspired by Chinese Buddhist sculpture. However, the interplay of the wood grain in this single block of yew with the artist’s subtle carving is a Japanese innovation. Originally paired with the Moon Bodhisattva (Gekkō Bosatsu), this figure likely flanked a sculpture of the Medicine Master Buddha (Yakushi Nyorai).

Object facts

• Title: Sun Bodhisattva (Nikkō Bosatsu)
• Date: c. 800
• Culture: Japan, Heian period (794–1185)
• Type: Sculpture
• Technique: Japanese nutmeg-yew wood with traces of color and gold
• Dimensions: Overall: 46.7 cm (18 3/8 in.)
• Collection: Japanese Art
• Department: Japanese Art
• Accession number: 1961.48

A detail from the museum

Japanese nutmeg-yew, or kaya, was used as a replacement for the unobtainable sandalwood of which small Buddhist sculptures imported from China were made.

Collection credit

John L. Severance Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• Lee, Sherman E. “Year in Review 1961.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 48, no. 9, 1961, pp. 219–251.
• Lee, Sherman E. “Nikkō, the Sun Bodhisattva.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 48, no. 10, 1961, pp. 259–265.
• “Oriental Art Recently Acquired by American Museums.” Archives of the Chinese Art Society of America, vol. 16, 1962, pp. 104–124.

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.