Iconographic Drawing of Saturn

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Rituals dedicated to the stars and planets were introduced to Japan from China in the ninth century together with Esoteric Buddhist teachings. Doyō (Sanskrit: Shanaishchara), or the planet Saturn, is one of the Nine Luminaries (Sanskrit: Navagraha) of the stellar system as originally defined in early Indian texts that were later incorporated into Buddhism. In China, Buddhist understandings of the heavens were intertwined with Daoist beliefs. Here, the planet is illustrated as an old man with a bull’s head atop his own, dressed in a flowing robe. Now mounted as a hanging scroll, the iconographic drawing once formed part of a handscroll including representations of other celestial bodies.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art