The World of Men and Animals

Historical period(s)
Kamakura period, 14th century
Medium
Ink and color on silk
Dimensions
H x W (image): 146.2 x 55.5 cm (57 9/16 x 21 7/8 in)
Geography
Japan
Credit Line
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art
Accession Number
F1904.343
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Painting
Type

Hanging scroll (mounted on panel)

Keywords
Japan, kakemono, Kamakura period (1185 - 1333)
Provenance

Mr. Kawahara, Osaka [1]

To 1904
Yamanaka & Company, to 1904 [2]

From 1904 to 1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Yamanaka & Company in 1904 [3]

From 1920
Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [4]

Notes:

[1] According to a note from the Original Kakemono List (see Curatorial Remark 3, in the object record).

[2] Undated folder sheet note. See Original Kakemono List, L. 492, pg. 137, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. The majority of Charles Lang Freer’s purchases from Yamanaka & Company were made at its New York branch. Yamanaka & Company maintained branch offices, at various times, in Boston, Chicago, London, Peking, Shanghai, Osaka, Nara, and Kyoto. During the summer, the company also maintained seasonal locations in Newport, Bar Harbor, and Atlantic City.

[3] See note 2.

[4] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Mr. Kawahara
Charles Lang Freer 1854-1919
Yamanaka and Co. (C.L. Freer source) 1917-1965

Label

Represented here and in the painting The World of Devas (F1904.342), are parts of the Six Realms of Existence into which living beings may be reborn according to Buddhist beliefs. In this painting are the worlds of men and animals, which correspond closely to the natural world of human experience. Nonetheless, according to Buddhist ideas, that realm is governed by illusion, desire, and sorrow. Hunting and other acts that involve oppression and destruction of one living being by another are illustrated here. This painting, like F1904.342, was created to give tangible form to complex Buddhist ideas regarding illusion, attachment, and rebirth.

Published References
  • Yamamoto Satomi. "中世仏教絵画の図像誌: 経説絵巻・六道絵・九相図." Iconography of Medieval Buddhist Paintings: Sutra Picture Scrolls, Rokudo-e, Nine Phases. Tokyo, Japan, February 14, 2020. fig. 16.
  • Toru Shimbo. Rokudo-e [Pictures of Rokudo]. Tokyo. figs. 64-65.
  • Kokuho Rokudo-e., Fall 2007. .
  • Ogushi Sumio. New Materials for the Study of Paintings of Rokudo. no. 753. pp. 372-393, pls. 6-7.
Collection Area(s)
Japanese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)

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