Densho temple bell

DateDedicated in the year 1752

MediumBronze

Dimensions8 11/16 × 4 1/2 inches (22 × 11.4 cm)

CultureJapan

ClassificationsDecorative Arts

Credit LineGift of Drs. Lee and Connie Koppelman

Terms

Decorative Arts
Bronze
Bells
Inscriptions
Poems
Poetry
Animals
Rabbits
Flowers
Grass
Japanese

Object number2001.049.019

Label CopyDensho bells were used during prayers and to call Buddhists to worship. Made to be suspended by a loop in the form of a pair of dragon heads, this bell has a stylized lotus on top, running rabbits along the base and strike plates in the form of chrysanthemums. The poem on the bell reads: From the summit of Mt. Kagu The sound of the bell floods to the fields When we hear it at evening It astonishes the dream of life and death

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