wooden Nio (Agyō and Ungyō)
E472447
Wooden Nio (Agyō and Ungyō) are a pair of fierce, muscular guardian deities carved from wood that stand at the Great South Gate of Tōdai-ji temple in Nara, Japan, protecting the sacred precincts from evil.
Observed surface forms (2)
Statements (45)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
Buddhist sculpture
ⓘ
guardian deity statue ⓘ guardian deity statue ⓘ guardian deity statues ⓘ wooden statues ⓘ |
| associatedWith | Great Buddha Hall of Tōdai-ji NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| createdBy |
Kaikei
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Unkei NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| culturalContext | Japanese Buddhist art ⓘ |
| dateOfCreation | early 13th century ⓘ |
| depicts |
Nio
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
closed-mouthed Nio NERFINISHED ⓘ open-mouthed Nio NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| designation | National Treasure of Japan NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| era | Kamakura period NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| expression |
closed mouth
ⓘ
open mouth ⓘ |
| function |
protect sacred precincts from evil
ⓘ
temple guardians ⓘ |
| guardianRole |
protect Tōdai-ji from evil spirits
ⓘ
ward off demons ⓘ |
| hasPart |
Agyō
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Ungyō NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| height | approximately 8.4 meters ⓘ |
| iconography |
dynamic, powerful posture
ⓘ
wrathful expression ⓘ |
| influence | paradigmatic example of Kamakura realism in sculpture ⓘ |
| locatedIn |
Great South Gate of Tōdai-ji
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Japan ⓘ Nara NERFINISHED ⓘ Nara Prefecture NERFINISHED ⓘ Tōdai-ji NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| material | wood ⓘ |
| pose |
aggressive stance
ⓘ
restrained but powerful stance ⓘ |
| position | flanking the Great South Gate entrance ⓘ |
| religion | Buddhism ⓘ |
| school | Kei school of sculpture NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| style | fierce muscular figures ⓘ |
| symbolism |
beginning of all things
ⓘ
end of all things ⓘ utterance of the syllable “A” ⓘ utterance of the syllable “Un” (Om) ⓘ |
| technique | joined-woodblock construction ⓘ |
| tourism | major attraction at Tōdai-ji ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.