Rafter finial in the shape of a dragon’s head and wind chime

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This finial in the shape of a dragon’s head would originally have been attached to a corner rafter of a royal hall or a Buddhist temple building (see, for example, the photograph to the right of a wood model pagoda from the Goryeo dynasty). The beast’s bulging eyes, flaring nostrils, and elaborate scales convey the fierceness and invincibility of this auspicious creature. The bell, which functioned as a wind chime, once had a metal-plate clapper inside and would have been suspended by a hook from the loop at the mouth of the dragon. The decorative panels on the lower halves of both faces of the bell feature a swastika (an ancient symbol associated with the Buddha) within a lotus-flower platform. The only other comparable example to this pair is in the collection of Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art in Seoul.

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