Youthful Male Shinto Deity (童子形神像),

12th century

Shinto, or "the way of the Gods," developed in ancient Japan, following indigenous beliefs that mountain peaks, trees, rocks, and other natural elements were inhabited by divine spirits. It is a belief system that knits together the people of Japan and their land, without reference to sacred texts, teachers, or a founder. This Shinto figure wears the robes of a young male courtier of the Heian period. In both painting and sculpture, Shinto deities frequently appear in the guise of nobility. The statue was carved from a single block of zelkova wood, with only the hands, now missing, carved separately and then attached. The figure would have been painted, and traces of paint, perhaps added at a later date, remain on the eyebrows, hair, and robes. The figure’s loose ponytails and round face indicate that he is still a boy and has not yet had his coming-of-age ceremony. The specific identity of this figure has not been established, but he would have been housed in a Shinto shrine, possibly alongside other deities.