Box with Design of Benkei and a Bell

Shibata Zeshin

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Musashibō Benkei (d. 1189), a historical figure known for phenomenal strength, can be identified here by the temple bell in his right hand and the Japanese halberd—one of the seven weapons with which he is associated—in his left. In his youth as a monk soldier at Enryakuji Temple on Mount Hiei, Benkei took the gigantic temple bell from Onjōji Temple, also known as Miidera, at the foot of Mount Hiei, dragging it with one arm up to the mountaintop compound. On the side of this box, Onjōji Temple appears in the foreground and Mount Hiei in the distance. Zeshin's pupil Ikeda Taishin (1825–1903) decorated the inside of the lid with a rosary design and a priest's Buddhist fringe used for preaching.

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