Repair work of ‘Prince Shotoku Lecturing on the Srimaladevi Sutra‘ under way

The three-year repair work of the “Prince Shotoku Lecturing on the Srimaladevi Sutra” hanging scroll, a designated important cultural property of Japan owned by the Seirai-ji temple in Tsu, Mie Pref., is under way. Representatives from the temple, the Agency for Cultural Affairs, the local governments (Mie Prefecture and Tsu City) and others gathered at Kyoto National Museum’s Conservation Center for Cultural Properties in Kyoto on Oct. 30, 2024, to confirm the course of action for the repair.

The painting depicts Prince Shotoku (574-622, son of Emperor Yomei) giving a lecture on the Srimaladevi Sutra (Shoman-gyo) to Soga no Umako (died 626) of the powerful Soga clan and three others at the behest of Empress Suiko (554-628, first reigning empress of Japan). The artwork is deemed important in that it connotes the spread of faith in the prince.

The painting, about 114 centimeters by 63 centimeters in size, was created in the second half of the 13th century (Kamakura period). The face of each character is painted distinctively, and the muted colors — such as the soft vermilion color used on the prince’s robe — give the overall painting a sense of calm.

The painting has a number of folds running across its width. According to Shokakudo (Kyoto), the workshop in charge of the latest repair work, when the painting was last repaired more than a century ago in 1918, people of the time used pieces of old silk from other works to fix the folds and other problems.

Traces of old repair work are usually removed before proceeding with the new. However, seeing that the last repair work was conducted diligently, those involved in the latest decided to leave the old silk as is.

“I realize keenly that cultural assets are passed down to the present day as a consequence of repair work repeated over the ages applying the best techniques available. We are grateful that the latest repair is going to be executed with the latest knowledge,” said Seirai-ji priest Ryosen Terai, 75.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun and other sources)