Zaō Gongen, Manifestation of Mount Kinpu, 12th century, Unknown Japanese, 48 3/4 × 12 3/4 × 8 7/8 in. ( × × cm), Wood with polychrome, Japan, 12th century, This unhappy-looking fellow with large pointed ears and sporting a conical cap is Zaō Gongen. He is a guardian deity of the Shugendō ascetic practice, who is said to live in the Yoshino Mountains in the rugged interior of the Kii Peninsula south of the ancient capital of Nara. A rare example of a religious figure of purely Japanese origin, Zaō Gongen is believed to have originally appeared to En no Gyōja (634'–701')

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Photo credit: © Penta Springs / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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