The Grand Buddha of the Todaiji Temple in Nara — 東大寺大沸
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Source:
- Japanese Art Open Database
- Image courtesy of
- Japanese Art Open Database
The Rushana Buddha (Daibutsu) housed within Todai-ji's Great Buddha Hall (Daibutsuden) in Nara is the largest surviving cast-bronze Buddha in Japan, dating in its current form primarily to the Edo period following earthquake and fire damage to earlier castings. Kotozuka's composition, this being the second of two variants, probably presents the enormous seated figure within the dim interior of the hall, emphasizing the vertical scale of the statue against the timber architecture surrounding it. Rendering the bronze patina — a complex greenish-grey — across a large figure would have required multiple carefully registered color blocks. The subject represents a departure from Kotozuka's primarily outdoor landscape subjects, requiring him to address interior space and the specific quality of light filtering through the hall's latticed openings. The kanji title 東大寺大沸 identifies this as Todai-ji's Great Buddha rather than one of the other large daibutsu at Kamakura or elsewhere.
伏見稲荷
Woodblock print
c. 1832/38
Color woodblock print; oban
Woodblock print
Uji Byodoin no ichibu
1921
Color woodblock print; oban
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
The Grand Buddha of the Todaiji Temple in Nara — 東大寺大沸 was created by Kotozuka Eiichi (琴塚英一).
The Grand Buddha of the Todaiji Temple in Nara — 東大寺大沸 depicts temples & shrines.
