Buddhist Vestment (Kesa)

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This robe, an example of a Buddhist vestment (Japanese: kesa; Sanskrit: kashaya) meant to distinguish the clergy from laypersons, is made from a woven textile that was cut up and reconfigured into a rectangular, bordered patchwork. As such, these garments embody both a form of pious donation and the practice of recycling textiles. The labor-intensive practice of piecing together fragments of cloth into specific columnar layouts was itself considered an act of religious devotion. The auspicious pattern of interlocking circles, which has a long history in East Asian art, suggests the design’s potential to continue endlessly in four directions. Various East Asian textiles with this type of pattern can be found in the mid-eighth century collection in the Shōsō -in imperial repository in Nara, Japan.

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