Temple guardian, anonymous, c. 1300 - c. 1400
polychromy, h c.237cm × w 146cm × d 62.5cm More details
These guards stand at the entrance to a temple to ward off evil. They are holding a vajra, with which to crush ignorance. Their open and shut mouths represent the first and last letters of the Japanese script: A and N: this symbolises the totality of sounds and letters, of knowledge. Worshippers who enter the temple through the gate symbolically receive that knowledge.
