Portrait of Dengyō Daishi (Saichō)

Unidentified

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This imagined portrait shows the monk Saichō (767–822), also known by his posthumous title Dengyō Daishi, sitting cross-legged on a Chinese-style carved lacquer chair in front of a painted screen. Saichō was the first Japanese patriarch of Tendai Buddhism, whose teachings are based on those of the Chinese Tientai sect. The notably Chinese-inflected portrayal here is a reminder that Saichō traveled to China in 804 and is said to have brought back manuals on Esoteric Buddhism, drawings of portraits of Tientai masters, and ritual accoutrements. Apocryphal lore also suggests that Saichō’s genealogy could be traced back to Chinese emperors.

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