著者

久野 健

雑誌

美術研究 = The bijutsu kenkiu : the journal of art studies

巻号頁・発行日

no.281, pp.1-15, 1972-10-01

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Among the sculptures of the Nara Period. inscribed examples are rare. The group of images of the Twelve Divine Generals (Twelve Escorts of Bhaisajyaguru) of the Shin-yakushiji includes one of these rare examples. The pedestal of one of the images, that of Aṇḍira, has a noteworthy inscription which suggests that the group of statues was made by a private workshop. The inscription on the pedestal states that it was made for the donor's parents and ancestors. The author considers this group of image to be unique and valuable material, as most of the Nara Period statues are productions of public workshops. Granted that this presumption that the group is by a private workshop is right, the skill of the artists in the private workshops is certainly not inferior to that of the artists in the public workshops engaged in production for government temples. The author points out that the structure of these clay figures is quite different from that of the Nara Period clay figures, which are supposed to have been made by public workshops, such as the Four Lokapālas of the Kaidan-in in the Tōdaiji and the Vajrapāni of the Sangatsudō in the Tōdaiji. Such works have a void space inside their torsos to reduce the weight of the upper half of the figures, and the vegetable coils used as an aid for applying clay to the details of the arms are much more intricate in these examples than in the Divine Generals. On the other hand, the torsos of the Divine Generals are not hollow and they have only nominal use of underclay vegetable coils for their arms. The author discusses in the present paper the supposed process of production of the Twelve Divine Generals of the Shin-yakushiji, based on the X-ray photographs of one of the figures, Catura. The production of this figure was perhaps started with the central wooden post which forms the main core of the head and the body. Then other wooden sticks which compose the core of the legs are attached to it. Two horizontal and two vertical wooden members are further added to the body part. Additionally, two more horizontal members are used to support the shoulders. A wooden core for the left arm is attached to this framework and another short wooden core for the left hand is jointed to it with clamps and nails. Further, the wooden cores for the fingers have short metal wires, perhaps copper wire, stuck into their tips. The flaring sleeve end along the upper arm is provided with metal wires and metal plates stuck into the wooden core. The wooden core of the forearm has vegetable coils roughly wound around the core. They are all aids for applying clay. The upper part of the right arm has a wooden core also attached to the above mentioned framework and the forearm has a separate wooden core. The structure of the right hand is the same as the left one. The flaring sleeve end of the right arm is provided with metal plates as subsidiary cores. The forearm has vegetable coils wound around the core in the same way as the left forearm. The rough shape of the statue was formed by applying clay mixed with temper to this skeleton. Then the details were formed by coating layers of clay over it and the final finish was done with finer clay, according to the author's analysis. In order to avoid monotony, the artist or the artists of this group of statues paid attention to changes of movement in each figure and in the form and treatment of details such as their hair and countenence. And their intention is well achieved. Generally speaking, their condition of preservation is good. Though the surface colours are very much flaked off, even many of the fragile fingers keep their original form. Some of the figures have later repairs at some places where the original clay has been lost. But the figures of Kumbhīra, Śaṇḍira and Mihira, for instance, even retain their original coloured patterns. An old document concerning the history of the temple states that these figures of Twelve Divine Generals were not originally statues belonging to this temple, but were moved from the Iwabuchidera. There is not much likelihood that the Shin-yakushiji which was an eighth century official temple, dedicated by Empress Kōmyō in the nineteenth year of Tempyō Era (747), had such privately dedicated statues from the beginning. Therefore, these statues were probably brought from the Iwabuchidera to this temple some time later, as the document states. The present paper is accompanied by a short report by ISHIKAWA, Rikuo, "X-ray Investigation of Catura Image of the Shin-yakushiji."