National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

Sec. i]

DECORATIVE ART IN SOME CHIEN-FO-TUNG SHRINES   937

years. It is with a due sense of the disproportion between the extent of such tasks and what a three weeks' stay allowed me to accomplish that I close here my account of the Thousand Buddhas and their treasures.

SECTION II.—LIST OF PAINTINGS, WOODCUTS, TEXTILES, AND MISCELLANEOUS ANTIQUES RECOVERED FROM CHIEN-FO-TUNG

*Ch. ooi. Painted silk banner. Subject : Bodhisattva with glass bowl. All accessories lost, but painting in excellent condition, and typical of most highly finished style of Chinese Buddhist painting. For others see Ch. 009, 001 r, 0016, i. 00x0, xxvii. 003, xxxiv. oor, lv. 0019, and lviii. 004 ; and, amongst banners of smaller size, those enumerated under *Ch. 002.

Bodhisattva stands, turning slightly to L., on large open lotus ; R. hand raised holding at shoulder level round bowl

of mottled green glass with metal rim ; head turned   L.
towards bowl, L. hand hanging by side with thumb and forefinger joined. Weight of body carried on R. leg, with all L. side relaxed, and fig. inclining slightly from feet to R. hip and again from R. hip to L. shoulder. This pose in itself suggests bearing of weight on R. hand, and calls attention to object carried.

Dress shows traditional Bodhisattva attire in its most elaborate form. It consists of trailing skirt of pale pink, with blue border, draping fig. from waist to feet. At waist its upper edge is turned over, and forms short white overfall, which is held round hips by a white girdle and leather (1) belt bound with gold. Below knees it is looped up by jewelled chains hanging from waist, and falls upon lotus at sides, while in front, over ankles, it reveals an under-robe of dull red with green border. End of white girdle hangs down ront of skirt in long fold, tied at intervals in butterfly knots and carrying at knee level a sq. jewel. Behind it hangs under-girdle, made of flat strip of red material figured with blue and white flowers ; ends of both are draped about petals of Padmäsana.

Upper half of body nude, except for band of purplish-pink drapery crossing fig. from R. shoulder, jewellery, and filmy blue stole whose trailing lines and delicate transparent colour make one of the chief graces of the painting. It clings to shoulders and upper arms, is festooned across front of figure, and floats finally over lower arms to ground.

Jewellery consists of gold bracelets, armlets, earrings, tiara, and heavy necklet. On either side of latter, at shoulders, are set heavy jewels from which hang bunches of variegated ribbon streamers, and jewelled chains. The latter are gathered together by large circular jewel at waist, and then part again to loop up skirt at knees as described above. All jewellery set with red, green, and blue jewels, and necklet and chains are hung with tassels.

Head-dress consists of narrow fillet of white drapery, ending in short streamers at ears, and with narrow white band hanging in long loop to knees. In centre, over forehead, it supports light but elaborate gold om. set with square upright

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jewel in middle and ending in two lotus buds which spring backwards over hair. At ears are flaming jewels and pointed lotus buds from which hang tassels on short chains.

Hair black, done in waves on forehead, with small lock hanging before ear, and on top of head in long backward-waving top-knot. Behind, it falls in heavy locks to elbows, forming dark background to upper half of fig.

Face of conventional ' Chinese ' Buddhist type, with arched black eyebrows, small slanting eyes half-shut, heavy cheeks, and small full mouth with down-turned corners and drooping moustache, and tuft of beard on chin. Nose here is long and straight, but it is often a large aquiline and corners of mouth upturned. The down-turned corners, and wrinkles marked from corner of nose to mouth, give the face in this instance a somewhat sulky expression. The ears have long pierced lobes, and the insides are very conventionally treated. Setting of eye is here shown only by shading of flesh, but in many cases it is marked by semicircular line drawn round its inner angle. Flesh in all these banners left the natural colour of the silk, delicately shaded with faint pink to show the modelling of face and body. Outlines of flesh are all black, except inside of ears and inner sides of hands ; but in most Bodhisattvas of this type all outlines are black. Eyebrows (and beard and moustache where present) are usually a green line over black.

Halo circular, with green centre surrounded by yellow band, within rings successively of red and white ; and bordered finally by wide ring of transparent blue deepening to solid blue at outer edge. Canopy an elaborate gold (1) circle, dome-shaped in centre and having upturned edge orn. with tassels and flaming jewels.

The bowl is circular, flat-bottomed, incurving to a gold-rimmed mouth, and allowing the spread hand supporting it to be seen through. The lotus underfoot is a transparent pink, outlined with solid pink, as in skirt.

2' 71. x .0.. PI. I.XXIX ; Thousand Buddhas, Pl, XXIx.

*Ch. 002. Painted silk banner with head-piece, streamers, and weighting-board complete, and in excellent condition. Smaller in size than preceding, but like it highly refined workmanship, and typical of the ' Chinese ' Buddhist style in finished state of development. For other banners in same size and style, representing non-particularized Bodhisattvas, and observing same conventions in treatment of fig., dress, halo, canopy, valance, Padmâsana, and ornamental finish of picture, see Ch. 003, 0025, 0055, 0081, 0083, 0096, 00109, 00112-13, 00462-4; i.002, 005, 007-8, 0013; iii. 001-3; xxii. 003, 0024; xxiv. 002. a-3, oo6 ; xxvi. a. oo8 ;

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