Shinto Deity as a Seated Courtier

Japan

Not on view

This figure, carved from a single piece of wood, represents a Shinto deity (kami) in the form of a Heian-period courtier. Around this time, divinity was conferred on the imperial court such that certain aristocrats, once deceased, were deified and venerated as kami. Some of them were responsible for the safety and stability of important clans. Despite the figure’s insect damage (common in Shinto statues from this period), its exposed wood grain—centered on the face—gives the work a dramatic effect.

Shinto Deity as a Seated Courtier, Wood; single-block (ichiboku-zukuri) construction, with traces of red and black pigment, Japan

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Shinto Deity as a Seated Courtier, Wood; single-block (ichiboku-zukuri) construction, with traces of red and black pigment, Japan
Shinto Deity as a Seated Courtier, Wood; single-block (ichiboku-zukuri) construction, with traces of red and black pigment, Japan

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