Description The Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak (Dongyue dadi) and five kings of hell. Ink and colour on paper. Framed and glazed. This representation is the left one of a pair, which together represent the Ten Hell Tribunals. Depictions of hell were and are used in rituals that were part of the cult of the dead. The concept of the Ten Courts of Hell was created after the Chinese folk religion was influenced by Buddhism. All the deceased will go to the realm of the dead or the underworld on their soul path, in order to go through the ten courts of justice, each of which is supervised by a hell king. The amount of time you spend there depends on the severity of the sins you committed and after the just punishment has been received.
Dimensions 140 x 76.5 cm
Artist or Maker Anonymous painter . 19./20. Jh.
Exhibited Exhibited in the Universit?tsmuseum für Kunst und Kulturgeschichte, Marburg, 12.10.-23.11.1980, and in the Museum for East Asian Art, Cologne, spring 1981
Literature Illustrated in: Jorinde Ebert, Barbara M. Kaulbach and Martin Kraatz, Religi?se Malerei aus Taiwan, Cologne 1980, p.177-118, plate 50
Provenance Collection Sauerbrey, Würzburg Private collection, Northern Germany
Notes VAT: Margin scheme