国立情報学研究所 - ディジタル・シルクロード・プロジェクト
『東洋文庫所蔵』貴重書デジタルアーカイブ

a yellow centre surrounded by dull pink and blue-grey. The short skirt or kilt is in

three horizontal bands; the upper one, dark grey between a blue line below and

blue and yellow above; the middle band, green between yellow and pink; and the

lower band, dark grey between blue. Probably there was a green frill at the lower

edge. A mantle is tied in front of the neck. The legs are armoured and discoloured.

The upper figure is dressed as a Lokapála, and his face is that of a satyr, elderly,

rugged, and bearded. The well-drawn hands hold a golden censer with green top,

from which rises a spiral cloud of incense. Oxidized like the others, the contour

lines of the face are frequently double, caused by a line of high light drawn in white

parallel to the outline having turned black. The red contour lines are now lighter

than the oxidized high-lights.

The whole is much broken and the paint so faded and discoloured as sometimes

to change or obscure completely the original colours. The inferior pigments,

excellent drawing, the posing of the figures and their unusual rendering suggest

Chinese work, an opinion supported by the presence of an inscription in Chinese

characters on the label at the top right.

Bez. xi. D, E

No indication is given on the plan of the position of this piece. It may have

come from the ceiling. Four Buddha figures, part of a diapered arrangement, are

seated on streaming clouds. They all wear the barred robe of a mendicant and have

the left hand resting, palm up, on the lap, and the right raised in teaching pose.

They may represent Maitreya, the future Buddha. The whole is badly abraded

and the features of the rather tanned face almost obliterated. The grey hair is out-

lined with red. The outer robe is pink, barred with buff, and perhaps lined with

green. The under-robe is unusual. It has an upper border of buff which crosses from

the left shoulder to the right side. Below is a sort of waistband of grey-black, with

green below and light grey above. No lotus is distinguishable under the figures,

but between them and the clouds is green, which may represent the lotus seed

table. The clouds are green, pale pink, and red-pink. The faded colourings of the

haloes ring the changes between green, pink, buff, and white. Jewel-centred lotuses

float in the white background.

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