Giyechen

Modern Period · 3F · World Art · Japan

Gigeicheon (Japanese Gigeiten), the goddess of the arts, is said to be a heavenly maiden born from the hair of the god Shiva when he created instrumental music in the heavens. She holds a dish of flowers in her left hand while her right hand hangs naturally at her side. The sculptor, Takamura Kōun (1852-1934), a founding master of modern Japanese sculpture, revived the tradition of Japanese wood carving, then imperiled by the anti-Buddhist policies of the Meiji Restoration, by bringing realism to it. The work is highly regarded for perfectly realizing this deity's form, rare even in Japan, in exact accordance with the iconography described in the scriptures.

See it in person at the National Museum of Korea — 3F · World Art · Japan

Source: based on official e-museum records (National Museum of Korea).