Shakyamuni with two attendants1300s · Study 1982.25

Context from the museum

The historic Buddha Shakyamuni is seated on an elaborately decorated pedestal and flanked by two attendants making gestures of devotion. The unknown artist used gold and deeply hued pigments to depict the luxurious fabrics, particularly the golden medallions of swirling dragons and clouds on the Buddha’s red robe. The painting itself is mounted in a Buddhist style with two tiers of fine silk borders. The inner border of gold brocade on a cream background surrounds the painting. The outer border is yellow silk; decorative silk strips, called futai , dangle from the top hanging bar.

Museum description reproduced from its CC0 open-access record. Read the original catalog entry.

A detail to notice

This painting was made on 3 vertical panels of silk stitched together. The joins are visible just outside of Shakyamuni's left and right shoulders.

Observation supplied by the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Read the dimensions before the image

The selected painting only measurement for Shakyamuni with two attendants is 112.8 cm wide and 218.4 cm high, equivalent to approximately 44.4 × 86.0 inches. Dividing width by height gives a format ratio of 0.52:1. The rectangular bounding area is 2.46 square meters; it describes the measured footprint, not the amount of paint or the monetary value.

On an illustrative 300 cm wall, the recorded width occupies 37.6% of the span before adding a frame. A centered placement leaves approximately 93.6 cm on each side before adding a frame. These are calculations by Physical Art For Crypto using museum measurements. They are not the museum’s display recommendations.

Questions to bring to your own collection

With Shakyamuni with two attendants in view, identify one feature you can point to, then distinguish what the museum records from your personal response. Keep its medium, Hanging scroll; ink, color, and gold on silk, in your notes when comparing contemporary works.

• Which part of this vertical composition catches your eye first?
• Would a 112.8 cm width still suit the space after allowing for furniture and a frame?
• What surface detail would you need to see in person or in a close photograph?