Sculptures (4) - Wood - An Important and Very Rare Japanese Group Shitenno - Four Heavenly King - ca. 1650 A - Japan - Early Edo period

Early Edo period, ca. 1655 A. D. High 69 cm. The result of C14 test nomber 2897-1238-17 is consisted with dating of this items. Provenance: – Formerly property from a Dutch private collection, acquired in the 1980s- Nagel Auction, Stuttgart, Special Auction Salzburg. Including Tamon Ten (Vaishravana) holding the spear and stupa, Jikoku Ten (Dhrtarashtra) with his left hand resting on his hip and brandishing the sword with his right hand, Zojo Ten (Virudhaka) holding spear in his left while his right is firmly placed on his hip and Komoku Ten (Virupaksha) with sword and scroll, all standing with their feet slightly apart in a menacing posture on a separate sculpted demon (jaki) , each wearing an armour secured with a double belt, one girdle set with a large belt-hook, three in the shape of a lion head, tunic with floating wide sleeves, boots, their faces displaying ferocious and menacing expressions with protruding eyes set below raised bushy eyebrows, broad noses, two with open mouths, two with the mouth firmly closed, their hair is combed in a chignon, one covered with a helmet and each secured with a metal tiara and all surfaces are lavishly inscribed with black painted characters, probably names of donors and traces of polychrome colors .