GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Part of the Buddhist tradition, lokapala are the heavenly guardians of the four cardinal directions. Lokapala served as protectors from evil, and four figures would have been placed inside Chinese temples or tombs at the four cardinal points. Lokapala sculptures are typically made of stone, wood, or ceramic. Stone and wood examples are usually found in Buddhist temples. This pair of lokapalas is made of clay built over armatures with decorative shapes applied to the surface. These materials and the decorative glazing indicate the figures’ intended use in a tomb setting. Within the context of a tomb, lokapala are a type of mingqi or funerary sculpture. Early mingqi were either unglazed or decorated with simple green or brown glazes. The sancai, or three color, technique used to create the colorful glaze of these two Tang figures flourished during the first half of the 8th century CE. This shift towards more dynamic decoration was accompanied by figures which were more elaborate in sculptural detail as well.
Adapted from
"Pair of Lokapalas (Heavenly Guardians)," DMA Connect, 2012.
NOTES
The following full text was pulled from a duplicate JBG note that will be trashed 1/16/2018. It appears JBG likely divided the original text into multiple notes or felt is was already covered in other notes using other sources.
Part of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, lokapala [lo-kah-pah-lah] are the heavenly guardians of the four cardinal directions. Lokapala served as protectors from evil, and four figures would have been placed inside Chinese temples or tombs at the four cardinal points. Lokapala sculptures are typically made of stone, wood, or ceramic. Stone and wood examples are usually found in Buddhist temples. This pair of lokapala is made of clay built over armatures with decorative shapes applied to the surface. These materials and the decorative glazing indicate the figures’ intended use in a tomb setting. Funerary lokapala sculptures replaced the earlier Taoist fangxiang or evil-averting entities that were placed in the four corners of the Han dynasty tombs.
This pair of Lokapala appear as powerful military figures with fanciful armor, fantastic helmets, and raised hands that would have once held weapons. Their fierce physiognomy or physical characteristics seems to refer to the foreign warriors the Tang Chinese would have battled. These figures wear decorative armor rather than field armor, indicating their likely status as court guards and, therefore, the importance and high rank of the person in whose tomb they would have been placed. Their armor includes exotic animal symbolism that would have transferred the associated strength and power of animals such as elephants, tigers, and lions to the wearer. The phoenix, a common symbol in Asian art, appears on the headdresses of the two heavenly guardians. Mythical creatures also decorate the upper armor of the figures, and one figure’s legs emerge from the mouths of elephants. One guardian stands atop a reclining bull and the other a struggling demon which symbolically represent the guardians’ triumph over ignorance. The iconography of stomping on demons or beasts is borrowed from Hindu and Buddhist images, which often show a deity atop similar figures. This indicates these religions’ influence on Tang dynasty China.
Within the context of a tomb, lokapala are a type of mingqi or funerary sculpture. Early mingqi were either unglazed or decorated with simple green- or brown-glazes. The sancai or three-color technique used to create the colorful glaze of these two Tang figures flourished during the first half of the eighth century. Sancai is a hallmark of Tang dynasty clay sculpture, and by the eighth century, these lead-based glazes expanded to include hues of green, amber, yellow, brown, white, and blue. However, the most common combination is green, cream, and brown. The colors were created by adding metallic oxides like iron and copper to the lead glazes. The glaze was then splashed, streaked, and dappled over the surface of the figures. This shift towards more dynamic decoration was accompanied by figures that were more elaborate in sculptural detail as well.
Adapted from
DMA Connect. Accessed 4 December 2014.
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General Description
Part of the Buddhist tradition, lokapala are the heavenly guardians of the four cardinal directions. Lokapala served as protectors from evil, and four figures would have been placed inside Chinese temples or tombs at the four cardinal points. Lokapala sculptures are typically made of stone, wood, or ceramic. Stone and wood examples are usually found in Buddhist temples. This pair of lokapalas is made of clay built over armatures with decorative shapes applied to the surface. These materials and the decorative glazing indicate the figures’ intended use in a tomb setting. Within the context of a tomb, lokapala are a type of mingqi or funerary sculpture. Early mingqi were either unglazed or decorated with simple green or brown glazes. The sancai, or three color, technique used to create the colorful glaze of these two Tang figures flourished during the first half of the 8th century CE. This shift towards more dynamic decoration was accompanied by figures which were more elaborate in sculptural detail as well.
Adapted from
"Pair of Lokapalas (Heavenly Guardians)," DMA Connect, 2012.
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Notes
The following full text was pulled from a duplicate JBG note that will be trashed 1/16/2018. It appears JBG likely divided the original text into multiple notes or felt is was already covered in other notes using other sources.
Part of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, lokapala [lo-kah-pah-lah] are the heavenly guardians of the four cardinal directions. Lokapala served as protectors from evil, and four figures would have been placed inside Chinese temples or tombs at the four cardinal points. Lokapala sculptures are typically made of stone, wood, or ceramic. Stone and wood examples are usually found in Buddhist temples. This pair of lokapala is made of clay built over armatures with decorative shapes applied to the surface. These materials and the decorative glazing indicate the figures’ intended use in a tomb setting. Funerary lokapala sculptures replaced the earlier Taoist fangxiang or evil-averting entities that were placed in the four corners of the Han dynasty tombs.
This pair of Lokapala appear as powerful military figures with fanciful armor, fantastic helmets, and raised hands that would have once held weapons. Their fierce physiognomy or physical characteristics seems to refer to the foreign warriors the Tang Chinese would have battled. These figures wear decorative armor rather than field armor, indicating their likely status as court guards and, therefore, the importance and high rank of the person in whose tomb they would have been placed. Their armor includes exotic animal symbolism that would have transferred the associated strength and power of animals such as elephants, tigers, and lions to the wearer. The phoenix, a common symbol in Asian art, appears on the headdresses of the two heavenly guardians. Mythical creatures also decorate the upper armor of the figures, and one figure’s legs emerge from the mouths of elephants. One guardian stands atop a reclining bull and the other a struggling demon which symbolically represent the guardians’ triumph over ignorance. The iconography of stomping on demons or beasts is borrowed from Hindu and Buddhist images, which often show a deity atop similar figures. This indicates these religions’ influence on Tang dynasty China.
Within the context of a tomb, lokapala are a type of mingqi or funerary sculpture. Early mingqi were either unglazed or decorated with simple green- or brown-glazes. The sancai or three-color technique used to create the colorful glaze of these two Tang figures flourished during the first half of the eighth century. Sancai is a hallmark of Tang dynasty clay sculpture, and by the eighth century, these lead-based glazes expanded to include hues of green, amber, yellow, brown, white, and blue. However, the most common combination is green, cream, and brown. The colors were created by adding metallic oxides like iron and copper to the lead glazes. The glaze was then splashed, streaked, and dappled over the surface of the figures. This shift towards more dynamic decoration was accompanied by figures that were more elaborate in sculptural detail as well.
Adapted from
DMA Connect. Accessed 4 December 2014.
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