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Section of Avatamsaka Sutra: the Nigatsudō Burnt Sutra


Tōdaiji Scriptorium, Section of Avatamsaka Sutra: the Nigatsudō Burnt Sutra, 744, handscroll fragment mounted as a hanging scroll; silver ink on indigo-dyed paper, Gift of Mary and Cheney Cowles, public domain, 2018.76.1

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Details
Title

Section of Avatamsaka Sutra: the Nigatsudō Burnt Sutra

Related Titles

original language: 大方広佛華厳経断簡:二月堂焼経

Artist

Tōdaiji Scriptorium (Japanese, active 8th century onward)

Date

744

Period

Japan: Nara period (710-794 CE)

Medium

handscroll fragment mounted as a hanging scroll; silver ink on indigo-dyed paper

Dimensions (H x W x D)

calligraphy: 9 3/16 in x 43 3/4 in; mounting: 33 7/16 in x 46 3/16 in

Collection Area

Asian Art

Category

Calligraphy

Object Type

hanging scroll

Culture

Japanese

Credit Line

Gift of Mary and Cheney Cowles

Accession Number

2018.76.1

Copyright

public domain

Terms

Buddhism

calligraphy

calligraphy

fragments

hanging scrolls

indigo

ink

Nara

poetry

Description

From Poetic Imagination in Japanese Art: Selections from the Collection of Mary and Cheney Cowles

This fragment was created as part of a set of sixty scrolls of the Flower Garland Sutra (J. Kegon-kyō). With its eloquent descriptions of a radiant, mystical universe presided over by the cosmic Buddha Vairocana, this influential text inspired massive architectural and sculptural monuments throughout Asia in the seventh and eighth centuries. Among them was Tōdaiji in Nara, Japan, established in the 740s as the headquarters for a countrywide system of Buddhist monasteries and convents.

The Tōdaiji Flower Garland Sutra scrolls were created for use in periodic rituals held in the temple’s Nigatsudō (Second Month Hall). In 1667, a fire badly damaged the set, leaving only twenty scrolls in fragmentary condition. Surviving portions, now known as the Nigatsudō Burned Sutras, are divided among Tōdaiji and museums and private collections in Japan; only a few fragments have found their way to North America.

The Nigatsudō Burned Sutras are the earliest Japanese religious texts to be executed in deluxe materials. The paper was dyed indigo blue and the text written in ink made from pure silver. The extravagance of the materials and the solemn, measured calligraphy fit the sacred nature of the text. The ragged, scorched lower edge of the scroll has turned a rusty red, eerily evoking the heat of the flames. Here, a mounting by contemporary artist Sugimoto Hiroshi further enhances the beauty of the burned paper.

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