Lokapala on a Recumbent Bull in the Brooklyn Museum, May 2011

Title: Lokapala on a Recumbent Bull

Date: 618–906

Dynasty: Tang Dynasty

Period: Tang Dynasty

Geography: Place made: Northern, China

Medium: Earthenware with glaze

Classification: Ceramic

Dimensions: 29 1/4 x 13 in. (74.3 x 33 cm) mount (dimensions as installed): 29 1/2 × 13 × 5 1/2 in. (74.9 × 33 × 14 cm)

Credit Line: By exchange

Accession Number: 37.129

Object Label

This fierce, armor-clad Lokapala or Heavenly King (tian wang) would have served as a Buddhist guardian of the four cardinal directions, protecting both the dharma (teachings of the Buddha) and the religious community. During the Tang dynasty, such protectors were often portrayed with non-Han facial features, reflecting the import of Buddhism into China as a foreign religion, introduced by foreign monks and merchants who brought new ideas, technologies, and religions across the ancient trading routes.

Caption

Lokapala on a Recumbent Bull, 618–906. Earthenware with glaze, 29 1/4 x 13 in. (74.3 x 33 cm) mount (dimensions as installed): 29 1/2 × 13 × 5 1/2 in. (74.9 × 33 × 14 cm). Brooklyn Museum, By exchange, 37.129. (Photo: Brooklyn Museum)


Text from: www.brooklynmuseum.org/objects/3429