Dobrovits Aladár szerk.: Az Iparművészeti Múzeum Évkönyvei 3-4. (Budapest, 1959)

HOPP FERENC KELETÁZSIAI MŰVÉSZETI MÚZEUM - Tibor Horváth: The new acquisitions of the Francis Hopp's Museum

whose image is commonly associated with that of Wën-Ti in temples."

11 His story dates from the latter part of the T'ang dynasty, when he appeared to save the emperor Hsiian-tsung from a little demon called Hsiia Hao, dressed in a green robe, with a horn clasp on his belt and official boots on his feet. When the emperor awoke and found that the fever had left him, he ordered Wu Tao-tze to paint the portrait of Chung K'uei, "the Protector against Evil Spirits" as he had seen him in his dream.

12 One of the earliest Chung K'uei paintings which reached Japan was the Portrait of Chung K'uei (Ch. K. defeating the demon) in the collection of lnoue Kaoru,

13 which was attributed to Wu Tao-tze in the olden times, as well as most of the older Chinese painting, done with colours, but it was — probably — correctly dated "somewhere between the South-Sung and Yuan dynasties" by an author in the Kokka, no. 230. According to a testimonial of Shunshö-an, this painting belonged to the famous collection of Ashikaga Yoshimasa which might be questionable but this was certainly copied by some well-known painters of the Muromachi period, like Minchö,

14 and others. Among the painters of the Muromachi Suiboku school, Shükö, (living in the latter half of the 15th century, a pupil of Shübun

15

) was regarded as a specialist of Shöki paintings.

16 It was a sign of his growing popularity that among the subjets of ötsu paintings, he was also included in the later period. ("Shöki- A mighty Chinese deity who routs fiends. Shown with an angry expression on his bearded face, brandishing a sword. Often the subject painted on the banners flown at the boys May festival."

17 Many houses in and around Kyoto are still supplied with a smaller size grey pottery statue or relief of Shöki, put in a niche near to the entrance door to protect the house. Our painting, originally was a little larger than it is now, after several remountings, resulting in the recutting of the margin. The robe is coloured green near to the folds, the edge of the boot is partly painted red. The left boot was omitted for some iconographical reason, though according to the legend, the demon Hsii Hao, appeared with a shoe on one foot, but none on the other, carrying the other one attached to his girdle. The flower stuck in his Court hat and painted red is the same peach flower which we could see on the Shöki painting in the lnoue collection. The face is painted with tender care and loving approach. It is threatening and soft and kind at the same time. The brushwork indicating the robe using some sharply pointed angular lines, strengthens the menacing effect not 11 S. Howard Hansford : A Glossary of Chinese Art and Archeology, The China Society, London, 1954, pp. 46—47. 12 Kokka, no. 13, p. 18 ; no. 230, pp. 16 — 17. E. T. C. Werner, Myths and Legends of China, George G. Harrap and Co. London, Calcutta, Sidney, 1922, pp. 248 — 50. 13 Kokka, no. 230. 14 See the copy attributed to Minchö (Chö Densu): A. Morrison : The Painters of Japan. T. C. and G. C. Jack, London and Edinburgh, 1911, vol. I., frontispiece. 15 Index of Japanese Painters, The Society of Friends of Eastern Art, Tokyo, 1941. 1G Kokka, no. 13. 17 M

. Yanagi : The Peasant Paintings of Ötsu, Japan. Eastern Art, II. College Art Association, Philadelphia, 1930, p. 31.