This article introduces materials related to the Two-yearold Prince Shotoku (Namu-butsu Taishi), a newly discovered wooden sculpture dating back to the 13th century. This figure presents an image of Prince Shôtoku based on the legend that when he was two years old he faced east at dawn, clasped his hands in prayer and recited “Namu-butsu,” interpreted as “I believe in Buddha.”
The sculpture introduced in this article entered the Nara National Museum collection in March 2009. The author
surveyed and photographed the work in June 2008 when it was still in the hands of the descendants of its former owner. While the provenance of the work only traces back to the owner prior to the former owner, the sculpting of this work is superior among known images of the subject and it is now thought to be the oldest extant image of example of its type. This article mentions several of the sculptural characteristics of the work and attempts an indication of their meaning.
研究資料 奈良国立博物館蔵 木造南無仏太子立像
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401_50_Tsuda_Redacted.pdf
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