迦諾迦伐蹉 Seated Nahan Ganakgabeolcha (Sanskrit: Kanakavatsa), unknown maker from Korea

Artwork Overview

迦諾迦伐蹉 Seated Nahan Ganakgabeolcha (Sanskrit: Kanakavatsa)
迦諾迦伐蹉 Seated Nahan Ganakgabeolcha (Sanskrit: Kanakavatsa)
迦諾迦伐蹉 Seated Nahan Ganakgabeolcha (Sanskrit: Kanakavatsa)
late 1600s–early 1700s, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910)
迦諾迦伐蹉 Seated Nahan Ganakgabeolcha (Sanskrit: Kanakavatsa) , late 1600s–early 1700s, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910)
Where object was made: Korea
Material/technique: wood; polychromy
Dimensions:
Object Height/Width/Depth (Height x Width x Depth): 52.07 x 32.7 x 24.13 cm
Object Height/Width/Depth (Height x Width x Depth): 20 1/2 x 12 7/8 x 9 1/2 in
Object Length (Length): left hand 17.78 cm
Object Length (Length): 7 in
Object Length (Length): right hand 17.14 cm
Object Length (Length): 6 3/4 in
Credit line: Museum purchase: Helen Foresman Spencer Art Acquisition Fund
Accession number: 2012.0092
On display: Loo Gallery
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Exhibition Label: "Nature/Natural," Feb-2011, Kris Ercums This polychrome wooden sculpture depicts an arhat, known as nahan in Korean. Nahan were holy men of Buddhism who attained freedom from ignorance and suffering. The number “two” 二 carved on the rocky base indicates that this sculpture depicts the nahan known as Ganakgabeolcha, called Kanakavatsa in Sanskrit. Believed to dwell in Kashmir, Kanakavatsa is often referred to as the “happy arhat,” evidenced by his smiling countenance. Originally, this nahan would have been part of a large sculptural assemblage most likely comprised of sixteen nahan. This group would have been enshrined in a Nahanjeon or “Hall of Arhats” as part of a larger temple complex. Together, the sixteen statues would have flanked a central triad composed of the historic Buddha Śākyamuni, the future Buddha Maitreya, and the past Buddha Dīpankara. An inscription on the base of this sculpture (右一 woo li) indicates that this particular sculpture was positioned as the first sculpture to the immediate left of the central triad. Dressed in Goreyo-style monk robes known as kasa, the original, delicate painting dating to the early 16th century is largely intact. Pages from sacred texts or sutras that were placed inside a small cavity in the head as part of the sculpture’s original ritual activation are still intact.

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