UK
Collection

Okimono "Shoki and the Oni Demons"

Workshop of Miyao Eisuke

  • Okimono "Shoki and the Oni Demons" 2
  • Okimono "Shoki and the Oni Demons" 3
  • Okimono "Shoki and the Oni Demons" 4
  • Okimono "Shoki and the Oni Demons" 5
  • Okimono "Shoki and the Oni Demons" 6
Basic information
ID
Рз-2428а,б,в,г
Author
Workshop of Miyao Eisuke
Name
Okimono "Shoki and the Oni Demons"
Date of creation
late 19th – early 20th c.
Country
Japan
Technique
casting engraving gilding carving painting
Material
bronze wood
Dimensions (height x width x depth, cm)
9.1 x 13.5 x 10
Additionally
Type
sculpture
Provenance
Gifted by a private individual
Exposition
Zolochiv Castle (Chinese Palace)
Information about author
Author
Workshop of Miyao Eisuke
Biography
The bronze sculptural composition is finely engraved and embossed and highlighted in gilding, a product of the famous Miyao Company, founded in the mid-19th century by the master Miyao Eisuke in Yokohama. Miyao's characters include aristocrats, samurai of all times and ranks, mythological and legendary heroes and deities.
Object description
​​The sculptural composition depicts Shoki and two Oni demons. Shoki is depicted with bulging eyes and a thick beard. He is dressed as an official in a cap with gold petals tied on the back, a luxurious dressing gown decorated with mandarin ornaments and mons – symbols of prosperity in peonies, boots with a floral pattern and a belt with gold overlays. According to legend, Shoki is a demon conqueror and is most often represented in Japanese art in a warrior's pose with an outstretched sword. But in this composition, Shoki is depicted as a comic hero, crawling away from two hideous humanoid demons Oni, each with four fingers and toes, two horns on their heads, long curly hair, and a grinning face. Behind Shoki stands a menacing demon with a stick in his hand. Dressed in bracelets on his arms and legs and a short skirt with an ornament of meihua plum flowers. The second demon, dressed in a shirt decorated with chrysanthemums and bracelets on his arms and legs, is depicted squatting, laughing and pointing at Shoki with the finger of his right hand.
Inscriptions
Signature 宮尾造 Miyao Eisuke

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