大仏

About this print

This woodblock print depicts the Great Buddha of Todaiji in Nara. It is one sheet from Nihon Taikan (Grand Views of Japan), a set of scenes from around the country painted by the Western-style painter Nakazawa Hiromitsu and published in 1922 (Taisho 11) by Kanao Bun'endo. Unlike traditional nishiki-e, it was made by carvers and printers who turned a Western-style painter's picture into a woodblock print. It can probably be counted among the shin-hanga (new prints) of the Taisho and Showa eras.

Emperor Shomu issued a decree to build the Great Buddha in 743, and its eye-opening ceremony, which consecrated the statue, was held in 752. It was damaged by fire in two wars, in 1180 and 1567. Much of the body of today's Great Buddha was recast in the Kamakura period, and the head in the Edo period. Some parts, including the pedestal, still date from the Nara period.

The Great Buddha Hall was rebuilt in 1709. Although smaller than the original, it is said to be one of the largest wooden buildings in the world. The Great Buddha and the hall are National Treasures, and in 1998 Todaiji was added to the World Heritage List as one of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara.

Glossary