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(★)(1.History records some of the contacts that ancient Japan had with distant lands, but still more eloquent are the treasures stored in the eighth-century Shoso-in repository. From the western end of the Silk Road, the great trade route that stretched from the Byzantine Empire in the west to Tang China in the east, came exotic goods that have captivated the Japanese ever since. The Shoso-in began as a storehouse of the Todai-ji, the largest monastery-temple in Japan´s one-time capital of Nara. Because of its religious function, the Shoso-in necessarily housed a number of objects used in Buddhist liturgy and also stored a variety of weapons, armor, and even medicine. By far the most intriguing treasures stored there, however, are those from the vast collection of Emperor Shomu. These were donated by his widow after his death in 756. They tell of the courtly elegance of Shomu´s day, of the games once played, music enjoyed, jewelry worn, designs favored, and the chests and other containers used to store belongings of the nobility. The matchless objects that traveled to Japan along the fabled Silk Road were the most prized. Among them are Persian glass decanters, unusual Indian musical instruments, Chinese furniture, and cloth with such exotic motifs as parrots and camels, all displaying a wide range of materials and methods yet unknown in Japan. Nara craftsmen made replicas of these valued imported goods, and in time the techniques and motifs came to be assimilated into the repertoire of Japanese decorative arts. This book, generously illustrated with over 200 photographs, including 39 in full color, outlines the fascinating historical background of this period in Japan, Tang China, and along the Silk Road, and thoroughly surveys the contents of the ancient storehouse in terms of style, designs, and function. The Shoso-in today remains a unique repository of eighth-century treasures originating from Greece, Persia, China, and Japan, and preserves in excellent condition objects that are no longer found elsewhere in the world. The author provides an informative introduction to an aspect of art history linking continents, and through an expert analysis explains how the collection in the Shoso-in tells more about those distant times than written history has been able to reveal. 2.Ryoichi Hayashi, born in Tokyo in 1918, graduate of Tokyo University, is now professor of art history at Tokyo University of Education. He is a recognized authority on Japan´s earliest intercultural exchanges with the Asian continent and has previously published a book in Japanese on the Silk Road.) |
BASE de DATOS, Biblioteca del Centro Cultural de la Embajada de Japon
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