The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of September 29, 2023

Adoring Monk

early 500s

China, Northern Wei dynasty

(386-534)

Gilt bronze

Overall: 14.9 cm (5 7/8 in.); Base: 3.6 x 5.2 x 3.9 cm (1 7/16 x 2 1/16 x 1 9/16 in.); Figure: 11.5 cm (4 1/2 in.)

Gift of Mrs. John Lyon Collyer in memory of her mother, Mrs. G. M. G. Forman 1962.213

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

The monk stands with his hands together in a reverent greeting.

Description

Portable Buddhist figures and objects like this gilt bronze had a variety of uses. They could have been carried in religious processions. Others could serve as donations, souvenirs, or votive items in the context of pilgrimages to religious sites. Their miniature size also made them appropriate for placement on private altars or shrines for personal devotion.

Provenance
by 1937–?
Mrs. Christian R. Holmes, New York, NY
after 1937–?
Mrs. G. M. G. Forman, given to her daughter, Mrs. John Lyon [Georgia Forman Elliott] Collyer
?–1962
Mrs. John Lyon [Georgia Forman Elliott] Collyer [1898–1994], given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
1962–
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Citations
Master Bronzes, Selected from Museums and Collections in America; February, 1937, the Buffalo Fine Arts Academy, Albright Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York. [Buffalo, N.Y.]: [Burrow and Co.], 1937. Reproduced: cat. no. 27
"Back Matter." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 49, no. 8 (October 1962). Reproduced: back cover www.jstor.org
The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 249 archive.org
Munsterberg, Hugo. Chinese Buddhist Bronzes. Rutland, Vt: C.E. Tuttle, 1967. Reproduced: pl. 100
The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 249 archive.org
Juliano, Annette L. Art of the Six Dynasties: Centuries of Change and Innovation: [Exhibition] October 29, 1975 Through February 1, 1976. New York. China House Gallery. New York: China House Gallery, 1975. cat. 51
Hai wai yi zhen. fo xing [Chinese art in overseas collections, Buddhist sculpture = 海外遺珎. 佛像]. Taibei Shi Shilin qu Waishuangxi: Guo li gu gong bo wu yuan, 1986. Reproduced: pl. 29
Sun, Di, editor. Zhongguo liu shi hai wai Fo jiao zao xiang zong he tu mu [中国流失海外佛教造像总合图目 Comprehensive Illustrated Catalogue of Chinese Buddhist Statues in Overseas Collections]. Beijing: Wai wen chu ban she, 2005. Reproduced: vol. 1, p. 150
Exhibition history

Art of the Six Dynasties: Centuries of Change and Innovation. China House Gallery, (October 29, 1975-February 1, 1976).

Master Bronzes Selected from Museums and Collections in America. The Buffalo Fine Arts Academy, Albright Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY (February 1937).

Year in Review - 1962. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 24-November 25, 1962).

China through the Magnifying Glass: Masterpieces in Miniature and Detail. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 11, 2022-February 26, 2023).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1962.213