Category:

Municipally Designated Tangible Cultural Property (Painting)

Title:

Enzoin kenpon chakushoku juniten gazo

Images of the Twelve Devas at Enzoin Temple (Color on Silk)

圓蔵院絹本着色十二天画像

No. of features:

Two paintings

Designated:

February 6, 1971

Location:

Deposited in the Saitama Prefectural Museum of History and Folklore (opens to new page)
 4-219 Takahanacho, Omiya Ward

Owner:

The religious juridical person of Enzoin Temple

Description:

Ancient Indian gods were incorporated into Buddhism as heavenly deities (devas) and guardians of the dharma (Buddhist law).

The twelve devas, a composite term for these heavenly deities, are guardians of the twelve directions. Taishaku-ten or Indra protects the east, Ka-ten or Agni the south-east, Emma-ten or Yama the south, Rasetsu-ten or Rakṣasa the south-west, Sui-ten or Varuṇa the west, Fu-ten or Vāyu the north-west, Bishamon-ten or Vaiśravaṇa the north, and Ishana-ten or Īsāna the north-east, Bonten or Brahmā the sky, Ji-ten or Pṛthivi the ground, Nitten or Ādiya or Sūrya the sun, and lastly Gatten or Chandra for the moon.

Believed to have been painted in the Muromachi period (1336-1573), Enzoin's images of the twelve devas are painted on two pieces of cloth adorned with six devas each. These gorgeous Buddhist paintings measure 99.8 centimeters in height and 40.3 centimeters in width. The paintings use rich colors on thin silk and incorporate a technique called “kirikane,” in which gold leaf is thinly sliced to form motifs.

Associated Texts:

(1986). “Cultural Properties in Omiya” (vol. 2). Omiya Municipal Board of Education.

Please be courteous towards other visitors and the site’s owners/curators when visiting this cultural property. This property is public during designated periods, for more details please inquire with the facility in question.

Inquiries (Japanese only)

Cultural Heritage Preservation Division, Department of Lifelong Learning, Board of Education Secretariat　

TEL：048-829-1723 FAX：048-829-1989

https://www.city.saitama.jp/004/005/006/001/017/011/003/p000235.html