At the special exhibition “Buddhist Images That Came from Kyushu,” now on display at the Kyushu National Museum in Dazaifu, Fukuoka Prefecture, a 5th-century gilt-bronze Buddha statue that had been passed down in a private home on Tsushima, Nagasaki Prefecture, is on show. Believed to have been made during China’s Northern Wei dynasty, it predates the officially recorded introduction of Buddhism to Japan by roughly 100 years, making it the oldest imported Buddhist image ever found in the country. Although discovered 38 years ago, this marks its first public showing in 30 years. On 5ch, threads gathered simple questions about whether the color seen through the display case is gold or verdigris, along with reactions about the statue’s actual size and the story of how it made its way to Japan.
At the special exhibition “Buddhist Images That Came from Kyushu,” now on display at the Kyushu National Museum (Dazaifu, Fukuoka Prefecture), a gilt-bronze seated Buddha statue (nyorai zazo) from China’s Northern Wei dynasty (453 AD) is on show. Made roughly 100 years before Buddhism was introduced to Japan, it had been passed down in a private home on Tsushima, Nagasaki Prefecture, and was discovered 38 years ago. It is considered the oldest imported Buddhist image ever found in Japan, and this marks its first public display in 30 years. The exhibition runs through the 30th. (By Yoshito Torii)
“This is a Buddha statue that has caught the attention of Buddhist art researchers around the world, including in Europe and the United States,” explained Makoto Osawa, 40, a senior researcher at the museum specializing in imported Buddhist images, standing in front of the glass case.
The seated Buddha stands 11.6 cm tall, or 22.7 cm including its pedestal. Features such as the four-legged pedestal, the wavy, piled-up hair, and the robe draped over both shoulders are considered characteristic of the Northern Wei era, when Buddhist statue-making in China began in earnest.
Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here
Is that because you're about to become a muenbotoke (a spirit with no living relatives left to tend the grave)?
No virtue, no enlightenment — straight to hell you go.
Kyushu National Museum — Special Exhibition "Buddhist Images That Came from Kyushu"
https://www.kyuhaku.jp/exhibition/exhibition_pre201.html
Gold or verdigris — which one is it really?
It was verdigris when discovered — they must've added gold leaf afterward.
If you zoom in you can tell the surface is covered in verdigris. The display case lighting has a low color temperature, which is why it looks yellowish/golden.
And on top of that, just 10 years after Jin unified China, Jin itself collapsed and the chaotic Sixteen Kingdoms of the Five Barbarians era kicked off lol
Well, that's because the whole story is built around Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Quan to begin with. There was probably an epic story happening even before Dong Zhuo was taken down — it's just never told.
This thing is overwhelmingly older than that, lmaooo
That's the year it was *made*, you know?
Dating something to "year 2" of an era is a classic forger's trick. Say "year 1" and the date might not even exist; go with year 3 or later and the era might not have started yet — so "year 2" is the safe bet that won't get you caught.
Give us a photo with the actual Buddha statue in it!
https://www.yomiuri.co.jp/media/2026/08/20260822-GYS1I00029-1.jpg
The statue itself is 11.6 cm tall, 22.7 cm including the pedestal.
Bigger than I expected.
Sounds like something you'd say about a rock you picked up on a walk.
It's made of metal, though?
Background and Key Points of This Discussion
Tsushima has long served as a gateway linking the Asian continent and Japan, an area known for the movement of people and goods well before any official route existed. The fact that this statue predates the official transmission of Buddhism (552 AD per the Nihon Shoki, or 538 AD per the Jogu Shotoku Hoo Teisetsu) by nearly 100 years suggests that imported Buddhist images may have been brought over at the individual or village level even before the official transmission — an easy point to misread as overturning the accepted “year Buddhism came to Japan” itself, which it does not. As for the color seen through the display case, some commenters thought it looked gold, but as explained in the thread, the surface is actually covered in verdigris from copper oxidation, and it only looks yellowish because of the low color temperature of the museum’s lighting. At 11.6 cm tall (22.7 cm including the pedestal), it’s small enough to fit in the palm of a hand, yet the fact that this is only its second public showing since being discovered 38 years ago speaks to the weight of its history.
*This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (News Express+) thread “[Fukuoka] Buddha statue enshrined in a small roadside shrine as “Tafuku-sama” turns out to be Japan’s oldest imported Buddhist image, drawing attention from researchers worldwide.”
