Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Tsuba with the Oil Monk
(Japanese Military Armor)
This tsuba illustrates the 12th-century story of the oil monk from Yasuka shrine in Kyoto. On a stormy night, reports circulated in the city of a fire-breathing monster. Taira no Tadamori went out to capture the monster and discovered that it was actually a poor monk walking to Yasuka shrine. He was carrying an oil lamp that emitted flames when he blew on it. The monk is on the right side of tsuba, carrying the lamp and an umbrella. Two trees are on the left. The rain is indicated by ridges in the small dots that cover the background. The reverse of the tsuba shows a lantern, which might be one at Yasuka shrine, and a tree. The rain here is highlighted in gold.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Geographies
Japan (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 2 11/16 ×W: 2 7/16 × D: 1/4 in. (6.8 × 6.2 × 0.7 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
51.225