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Lot Essay
Suetsugu (Suetsugu Masayuki) was a founder of Suetsugu School of metal artists mainly making Buddhist altar utensils and metal sculptures, called kazarishi. He was very skilled in the traditional metalwork techniques and especially good at making metal sculptures using various types of colorful soft-metals including gold, silver, shakudo and shibuichi. The record of Suetsugu and his school appears in Tsuiki no enkaku (History of metal hammering technique), published by Nihon tankin kogeikai (Society of Japanese metal hammering work) in 1966.
The Sixteen Arhats illustrates the lives and preaching scenes of the sixteen arhats (rakan), the preservers of the teaching of Buddhism. They are advanced disciples of the historical Buddha Shakyamuni who epitomize the ideals of self-discipline and meditation and have postponed Nirvana in order to remain in the world to protect the Buddhist law until the coming of the future Buddha, Miroku. The aged Indian recluses are given individual portrait-like representations that draw on Chinese models. Pindola, the first disciple of the Buddha, is seated at the center of front panel, holding a small pagoda. Others hold rosaries, Buddhist ritual implements or whisks, or they are shown with the various creatures that always accompany them, including a dragon, tiger, lion, ram, sparrow and mandarin ducks.
The inner front door is inscribed with the name of each arhat, Pindolabharadraja, Kanakavatsa, Kanakabharadraja, Subinda, Nakula, Bhadra, Kalika, Vajraputra, Jivaka, Panthaka, Rahula, Nagasena, Angaja, Vanavasin, Ajita and Cudapanthaka.
The Sixteen Arhats illustrates the lives and preaching scenes of the sixteen arhats (rakan), the preservers of the teaching of Buddhism. They are advanced disciples of the historical Buddha Shakyamuni who epitomize the ideals of self-discipline and meditation and have postponed Nirvana in order to remain in the world to protect the Buddhist law until the coming of the future Buddha, Miroku. The aged Indian recluses are given individual portrait-like representations that draw on Chinese models. Pindola, the first disciple of the Buddha, is seated at the center of front panel, holding a small pagoda. Others hold rosaries, Buddhist ritual implements or whisks, or they are shown with the various creatures that always accompany them, including a dragon, tiger, lion, ram, sparrow and mandarin ducks.
The inner front door is inscribed with the name of each arhat, Pindolabharadraja, Kanakavatsa, Kanakabharadraja, Subinda, Nakula, Bhadra, Kalika, Vajraputra, Jivaka, Panthaka, Rahula, Nagasena, Angaja, Vanavasin, Ajita and Cudapanthaka.