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Directory: Antiques: Regional Art: Asian: Korean: Paintings: Pre 1900: Item # 1413570

Please refer to our stock # 1432 when inquiring.

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Korean Art and Antiques
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Korean 19th Century Sansin the Mountain Spirit Painting with a Fantastic Tiger. Korean tiger folk paintings are revered throughout the art world for their unique depictions of the tiger's humor and charm. You will not find a better example of the beloved Korean folk tiger than the fantastic fellow depicted here. He is exploding with personality. In a country where most of the land is covered by mountains, it makes sense that Sansin the Mountain God is the most revered of Korea's native deities. He is the god most often appealed to for fertility, prosperity, and longevity. This Sansin is a great example of the open-minded syncretism of ancient Korean belief. He is a deity of purely Korean Shamanist origin, crowned by a Confucian hat, carrying Daoist mythical bullocho longevity plants in a basket on his staff, while wearing a Buddhist robe. For his scepter, he holds a wood staff as gnarled as the pine tree under which he sits. The pine tree is a symbol of longevity and tenacity. The feather fan he holds in his left hand is used to control the wind spirit and other nature spirits. Sansin paintings can be found in the Sansin-gak shrine of Korean Buddhist temples. Sansin's tiger is the animal lord of the mountain and the messenger for Sansin and the enforcer of his will. Ink and colors on silk. Frame: 36 x 34 inches, 91.5 x 86.5 cm. Painting: 27.5 x 25.5 inches, 70 x 65 cm.