Japan, Kamakura period (1185–1333) / 1269
Buddha of Infinite Life and Light (Amida Nyorai)
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs Buddha of Infinite Life and Light (Amida Nyorai) as sculpture (Japan, Kamakura period (1185–1333) · 1269).
The lead sculptor was Kōshun, who had been granted the lofty title “Bridge of the Law.”
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this sculpture as Cypress with lacquer, color, gold, cut gold, rock-crystal inlaid eyes, and quartz and credits Kōshun (Japanese, active mid-1200s).
The museum's collection notes: This ornate Buddha Amida stands in a posture of welcome, greeting the dying who will accompany him back to his Pure Land. Documents inserted into the sculpture’s hollow core around the time of its creation include a copy of the sacred text Amida Sutra , a register of donors who desired to be joined together in generating karmic merit ( kechien ) through the creation and dedication of the sculpture, and a record asserting that the image was completed over the course of 33 days in 1269 at Shitennōji Temple in Osaka.
FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE
The Cleveland Museum of ArtBuddha of Infinite Life and Light (Amida Nyorai)Original explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.