A GILT BRONZE FIGURE OF A MALE SHINTO DEITY

This male figure is seated with legs crossed, as though in prayer. He is represented as a court nobleman with tall cap and high-necked jacket. After Buddhism was introduced to Japan in the sixth century, temple workshops began to produce icons in wood and bronze. In due course, there was a demand for images of the ancient native Shinto kami, or spirits, as well. Shinto shrines used images of male and female divinities in anthropomorphic form, dressed as priests or courtiers. There are no inscriptions, so identities are uncertain.