Zhenwu, the perfect warrior, Lord of the North

Chinese Collection

Accession Nr.: 2007.73.1
Type: sculpture; religious or cult object
Date of production:
1538
Ming dynasty
Place of production:
Materials: bronze
Techniques: gilt; lacquered
Dimensions: height: 34 cm

basei:

width: 19.2
length: 18 cm
Zhenwu, the Taoist deity, is well known throughout China as the Perfect Warrior or the Black Warrior. He has been a popular figure in Chinese mythology since the end of the third century BC. By the mid-fifteenth century he had become the most important member of the Taoist pantheon, the chief protector of both the emperor and the state.