Object Details
- Label
- This pillar base in the shape of a guardian-demon originally belonged to the same cave-temple that F1953.87 was taken from in the early twentieth century. Probably this object was removed from China around the same time as the other one, in 1916, and when it surfaced on the art market in the 1950s, the Freer Gallery of Art purchased it. This figure was taken from a flat sidewall, while the angled base of the other guardian-demon (F1953.87) indicates that it was originally positioned at the lower corner of the central pillar in the cave.
- Provenance
- Originally located in the North Cave, northern Xiangtangshan, Hebei province, China [1]
- From at least 1950 to 1953
- C. T. Loo & Company, New York, from at least April 27, 1950 [2]
- From 1953
- Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from C. T. Loo & Company on July 10, 1953 [3]
- Notes:
- [1] The removal of the sculpted figures and fragments from the Xiangtangshan caves began ca. 1909 at the time of political upheaval in China and continued throughout several decades, see http://xts.uchicago.edu/, accessed on November 9, 2009. See also J. Keith Wilson and Daisy Yiyou Wang, "The Early-Twentieth-Century 'Discovery' of the Xiangtangshan Caves," in Katherine R. Tsiang et al., Echoes of the Past: The Buddhist Cave Temples of Xiangtangshan, exh. cat. (Chicago: Smart Museum of Art; Washington, DC: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, 2010), pp. 106-129 and Katherine R. Tsiang and J. Keith Wilson, "Catalogue of Works in the Exhibition," in Katherine R. Tsiang et al., Echoes of the Past: The Buddhist Cave Temples of Xiangtangshan, 2010, pp. 180-181, cat. no. 11 (ill.).
- [2] See C. T. Loo's letter to Archibald Wenley, dated April 27, 1950, in which Loo discusses shipping the sculpture along with F1953.87 to the Freer Gallery, and "List of Objects Shipped to the Freer Gallery of Art", attached to the letter, copy in object file.
- See also Loo's stockcard no. NN: "Two stone sculptures, Demons," Frank Caro Archives, Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, copy in object file.
- [3] See C. T. Loo's invoice, dated July 10, 1953, copy in object file.
- Collection
- Freer Gallery of Art Collection
- Exhibition History
- Promise of Paradise (October 14, 2017 - ongoing)
- Echoes of the Past: The Buddhist Cave Temples of Xiangtangshan (February 26, 2011 to January 6, 2013)
- Chinese Buddhist Sculpture in New Light (April 14, 2002 to September 8, 2003)
- A Decade of Discovery: Selected Acquisitions 1970-1980 (November 9, 1979 to May 22, 1980)
- Korean Ceramics (April 11, 1978 to October 13, 1978)
- Untitled Exhibition, North Corridor (November 20, 1969 to December 11, 1984)
- Chinese Art (January 1, 1963 to March 6, 1981)
- Centennial Exhibition, Gallery 17 (November 17, 1955 to January 1, 1963)
- Stone Sculpture, Gallery 17, 1923 (May 2, 1923 to November 17, 1955)
- Untitled Exhibition, Asian Sculpture, North Corridor (May 2, 1923 to October 28, 1955)
- Previous custodian or owner
- C.T. Loo & Company (1914-1948)
- Credit Line
- Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
- 550-577
- Period
- Period of Division, Northern Qi dynasty
- Accession Number
- F1953.86
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Type
- Sculpture
- Medium
- Limestone relief
- Dimensions
- H x W x D: 80.5 x 55.7 x 30.5 cm (31 11/16 x 21 15/16 x 12 in)
- Origin
- Northern Xiangtangshan, North Cave, Hebei province, China
- On View
- Freer Gallery 17: Promise of Paradise
- Related Online Resources
- Google Cultural Institute
- See more items in
- Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection
- Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
- Topic
- stone
- Buddhism
- relief seal
- demon
- Period of Division (220 - 589)
- Northern dynasties (386 - 581)
- Northern Qi dynasty (550 - 577)
- temple
- cave
- China
- Chinese Art
- monster
- Record ID
- fsg_F1953.86
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye3e9af1a22-2eff-4612-b4c9-7883db5817ac
