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Shōki, the Demon Queller

Shōki, the Demon Queller

Artist/Maker (Japanese, ca. 1697–1756)
Publisher
Datelate 1750s
MediumWoodblock print (benizuri-e); ink and limited color on paper
DimensionsHashira-e; overall: 28 3/8 × 3 7/8 in. (72.1 × 9.8 cm)
Credit LineMary A. Ainsworth Bequest
Object number1950.166
Status
Not on view
More Information
Shōki 鍾馗, the Demon Queller, was a popular Chinese guardian deity. He can be recognized by his bushy beard, scholar’s cap, and intense glare. In East Asia at New Years’ time, and in Japan particularly around the Children’s Festival on May 5, images of Shōki were pasted on doorways or gates to protect the home from evil.
Exhibition History
Forty-eight Japanese Prints from the Mary A. Ainsworth Collection
  • University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN ( 1954-02 - 1954-02 )
  • University of the South, Sewannee, TN ( 1954-03 - 1954-03 )
Japanese Prints from the Mary A. Ainsworth Collection
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (May 20, 1986 - July 20, 1986 )
A Life in Prints: Mary A. Ainsworth and the Floating World
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (February 3, 2015 - June 7, 2015 )
Collections
  • Asian
This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator. Noticed a mistake? Have some extra information about this object? Please contact us.