119 - A RARE DOUBLE-SIDED LACQUER ZUSHI (PORTABLE SHRINE) WITH A CERAMIC RELIEF OF FUDO MYO-O AND ATTENDANTS, EDO PERIOD

A RARE DOUBLE-SIDED LACQUER ZUSHI (PORTABLE SHRINE) WITH A CERAMIC RELIEF OF FUDO MYO-O AND ATTENDANTS, EDO PERIOD Japan, 18th-19th century, Edo period (1615-1868) The tall rectangular shrine of roiro lacquer, richly mounted with chased and pierced copper-alloy fittings, the rounded top above two pairs of hinged doors opening independently to either side. One side reveals a dark ceramic relief centered by Fudo Myo-o seated upon a rocky outcrop within a flaming mandorla, surrounded by the four other Great Wisdom Kings - Gozanze, Gundari, Daiitoku, and Kongo Yasha - with his principal child attendants Kongara and Seitaka below, all amid densely modeled clouds and flames. The reverse of the ceramic relief is dynamically modeled with Kurikara Ryu-o, the dragon manifestation of Fudo Myo-o, coiling around the sacred sword amid swirling flames and clouds. The richly gilt interior is fitted with a shaped upper panel painted with confronted ho-o birds, while the inner doors are finely painted in polychrome with the remaining six of Fudo's Eight Great Child Acolytes - Eki, Anokuta, Shojo Biku, Shitoku, Eko, and Ukubaga - together with Kongara and Seitaka forming the complete Hachidai Doji. HEIGHT 38.5 cm WEIGHT 3.6 kg (total) Condition: Restorations to the ceramic relief. Otherwise very good condition with old wear. Rubbing to gilt, flaking to lacquer, tiny nicks and dents to edges. The exceptional rarity of the present shrine lies in both its material and iconography. Ceramic devotional images housed within zushi are seldom encountered, while here the complete Godai Myoo is combined with the complete Hachidai Doji and, on the reverse, Kurikara Ryu-o, forming an unusually comprehensive iconographic program centered on Fudo. The Nara National Museum itself notes that representations of Fudo accompanied by all Eight Child Acolytes are rare.