Rethinking Asuka Sculpture: A Revised Conception of Buddhist Spread in East Asia, 538-710 (East Asian Comparative Literature and Culture, 15)

Book info: Rethinking Asuka Sculpture: A Revised Conception of Buddhist Spread in East Asia, 538-710 (East Asian Comparative Literature and Culture, 15) (Hardcover, 280 pages) – Brill, 2024. Language: English.

In this book, WU Hong deconstructs the prevailing theory of a 100-year Buddhist artistic lag between Asuka Japan and the Chinese mainland. She proposes to radically re-date Asuka statues, such as the famous Hōryūji Kondō Shaka Triad. The new dating opens up possibilities for revising our perceptions of early Japanese history and interchange in East Asia, while also allowing a fresh account of Asuka statuary to emerge. Proceeding from the revised chronology and emphasizing local processes, this new account brings the growth of Asuka Buddhism into clearer vision and elaborates on heretofore unknown historical details for an enriched understanding of this critical period of East Asian history. Editorial Reviews About the Author WU Hong, Ph.D. (2020), University of Vienna, is assistant professor of Philosophy of Art and Art History at Fudan University. She has published several articles on East Asian Buddhist art and Chinese art of the medieval period.