Miidera Temple: Lantern
Gilt copper alloy
Miidera Temple: Lantern
JAPAN, Shiga, Otsu; Momoyama period
This kind of lantern was typically hung under a temple’s eaves, but was also used as an offering instrument placed in front of the Buddha.
The gilt copper alloy lantern consists of three sections: the base, lamp, and top. The top features a chrysanthemum pattern in openwork, allowing the smoke to disperse. Twelve beautifully fashioned lotus petals incised with three jewels surround the top. In the center there is a jewel with a ring from which the lamp is suspended. The lamp is hexagonal with each side featuring floral, peony, and vine patterns. Six delicately carved feet support the lamp. The door is inscribed with the year equivalent to 1599.
For more details, go to the Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Artifacts, page 190.
Cite this article:
Hsingyun, et al. "Miidera Temple: Lantern." Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Artifacts , vol. 18, 2016, pp. 190.
Hsingyun, Youheng, Youji, Stefanie Pokorski, Mankuang, and Wen Fan. 2016. "Miidera Temple: Lantern" In Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Artifacts , 18:190.
Hsingyun, Youheng, Youji, Pokorski, S., Mankuang, & Fan, W.. (2016). Miidera Temple: Lantern. In Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Artifacts (Vol. 18, pp. 190).
@misc{Hsingyun2016,
author = Hsingyun and Youheng and Youji and Pokorski, Stefanie and Mankuang and Fan, Wen,
booktitle = {Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Artifacts },
pages = 190,
title = {{Miidera Temple: Lantern}},
volume = 18,
year = {2016}}
author = Hsingyun and Youheng and Youji and Pokorski, Stefanie and Mankuang and Fan, Wen,
booktitle = {Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Artifacts },
pages = 190,
title = {{Miidera Temple: Lantern}},
volume = 18,
year = {2016}}