Gencho - Gencho

Japanese: 玄朝 - げんちょう

Years of birth: unknown. A Buddhist sculptor who was active in the Nara region in the mid-Heian period. Also written as Gencho. In the "Todaiji Yoroku," it is written that when the embroidered mandala in the Great Buddha Hall of Todaiji Temple was damaged in 987, Gencho of Gangoji Temple was in charge of repairing it. The "Shichidaiji Nikki" also states that the half-carved statues of the twelve heavenly generals that were in the Golden Hall of Gangoji Temple at the time were Gencho's "eyo" (design), but the wooden carved statues currently extant at Kofukuji Temple are thought to be the same. Although no confirmed works remain, his name remains on several white-drawn images of Acala. In particular, a painting of the head of Acala and a child (owned by Daigoji Temple) with the inscription "written by Asukadera Gencho" in the painting closely resembles the famous "Acala statue with two children" (blue Acala, still extant) at Shoren-in Temple, and became a typical example of an image of Acala.

(Arata Yajima)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

生年：生没年不詳
平安中期,奈良地方で活躍した絵仏師。源朝とも書く。東大寺大仏殿にあった繍曼荼羅が永延1(987)年に破損した際,元興寺の玄朝が修理に当たったとの記述が『東大寺要録』にみえる。また『七大寺日記』は当時元興寺金堂にあった半肉彫十二神将像が源朝の「絵様」(図案)であると記しているが,興福寺に現存する板彫像がこれに当たるとみられる。確実な作品は残っていないが,不動明王を描く白描図像のいくつかにその名が残る。特に図中に「飛鳥寺玄朝筆」の書き入れのある不動の頭部と童子を描いたもの(醍醐寺蔵)は,有名な青蓮院「不動明王二童子像」(青不動,現存)に酷似するなど,不動画像の一典型となった。

(矢島新)

出典　朝日日本歴史人物事典：（株）朝日新聞出版朝日日本歴史人物事典について　情報

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