Painting and Textiles
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King Wen and Lü Shang; The Four Elders of Mount Shang (detail)
Nanbokuchō period, 14th century (Important Cultural Property)The Gallery of Horyuji Treasures Room 6
September 30, 2025 (Tue) - October 26, 2025 (Sun)The Gallery of Horyuji Treasures contains paintings from as early as the 11th century—including the National Treasure the Illustrated Biography of Prince Shōtoku (1069 AD), which depicts the legends surrounding Hōryūji Temple’s founder. Other works include the Important Cultural Property the Four Sages at Mount Shang, and Wen Wang and Lü Shang (1364 AD) along with numerous paintings featuring Buddhist themes.
The textiles held in the collection date from the mid-7th to 8th century and consist mainly of Buddhist ritual banners (ban), table mats (joku), and robes or other clothing worn by monks. The textiles also include fragments whose original uses are unknown, including rare ancient textiles, such as warp-faced compound weaves, tapestries, warp ikat fragments, complex gauze (ra), and plain- and twill-weave silks.
| Designation | Name | Creation/ Excavation/ Provenance |
Period | Acquisition/ Ownership/ Accession Number |
CMT | ||
| Highlight | Important Cultural Property | King Wen and Lü Shang; The Four Elders of Mount Shang | Nanbokuchō period, 14th century | N-4 | |||
| Highlight | Fragment of "Ban" (Buddhist Ritual Banner) | Asuka–Nara period, 7th–8th century | N-319-37 | ||||
| Highlight | Fragment of Banner Leg with Incense Burner and Candle Stand | Asuka–Nara period, 7th–8th century | N-319-46 |