A TALL AND UNUSUAL JAPANESE LACQUERED WOOD ZUSHI (PORTABLE SHRINE)

A TALL AND UNUSUAL JAPANESE LACQUERED WOOD ZUSHI (PORTABLE SHRINE)

EDO OR MEIJI PERIOD, 19TH CENTURY

The case lacquered black, the doors opening to reveal the tall figure of a Buddhist guardian deity, probably Kōshin-shinkō; the wrathful figure standing on two oni, the demons crouching underneath a tiger skin, all raised on a rocky outcrop; the God depicted with six arms and three eyes, holding various attributes including a bow and arrow, a sword and a halberd; another hand grasping the hair of a small human figure in prayer, probably the soul of a worshipper; wearing lose robes revealing his bare torso and a necklace made of three skulls; his crown and mandorla behind him made of soft metal; with details rendered in polychrome and gilt,

the eyes inset in glass, 52.5cm overall.