sankozuka-no-ken　三鈷柄剣

KEY WORD :　art history / sculptures

A sword, with a blade at one end and a handle topped by three prongs shaped like a *sankosho 三鈷杵. Originally used by hermits and priests travelling through mountain areas to clear wild plants in their path, the sword took on a symbolic meaning in Buddhist prayers as a weapon to chase away the devil. A famous Kamakura period (13-14c) example can be seen in Kuramadera 鞍馬寺, Kyoto. The sankozuka-no-ken is often an attribute *jimotsu 持物 held by Buddhist figures such as *Senju Kannon 千手観音 *,Monju 文殊, and *Fudou Myouou 不動明王.

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