Eleven-headed Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara (Jūichimen Kannon)
13th century
Classification
Painting
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Accession Number
F1904.350
Tags
About this artwork
The bodhisattva Kannon is the manifestation of the wisdom and infinite compassion of the universal Buddha. Symbolic of his unlimited capacity to care for suffering beings, Kannon is represented in thirty-three distinct forms. Devotion to one of these forms, that of the Eleven-Headed Kannon, was especially popular among Japanese Buddhists from the ninth century. Indeed, social upheaval and apocalyptic fears that swept through Japan in the eleventh and twelfth centuries intensified cult worship of...
About the Artist
Unknown
The artist designated as "Unknown" in our virtual museum's collection exemplifies a poignant chapter in art history: creators whose identities have faded into obscurity despite the enduring power of their work. With only one known artwork attributed to them in our holdings, this figure represents countless anonymous hands that shaped visual culture across centuries. Museums worldwide, including th...