Research on medieval and early modern regional Buddhism in eastern Japan from a new perspective

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K00165
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 01060:History of arts-related
• Research Institution: Hirosaki University
• Principal Investigator: Sudo Hirotoshi 弘前大学, 人文社会科学部, 客員研究員 (70124592)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 矢島 新 跡見学園女子大学, 文学部, 教授 (00565921) ; 近藤 暁子 山梨県立博物館, 山梨県立博物館, 学芸員 (80574152)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 地方仏 / 民間仏 / 東北 / 信仰

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The following two points were clarified regarding the development of religious sculpture in northern Tohoku. First, I conducted a large-scale survey of examples of folk statues created by amateur craftsmen to understand their aspects and characteristics. In particular, we specifically grasped the appeal of the unique and sculptural expressions of statues created by craftsmen and carpenters involved in woodworking. Another point is that it reveals the importance of folk Buddhism in northern Tohoku, which is showing an unusual development in the early modern period, when religious statues were homogenized across the country and avoided individual expression. It has been concretely revealed that in the early modern period, when the essence of local Buddhism, which openly expresses prayer in its forms, was on the verge of being lost, in northern Tohoku, Buddhist statues and divine statues that inherited this character were continued to be created in village life.

Free Research Field

美術史

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

日本彫刻史や近世美術史において、その存在や価値を知られることがなかった地方の民間仏の重要性と魅力を初めて明らかにした。また、その原点となる中世以前の地方仏から継承された要素と地域性の特色も明らかにした。
何より本研究の成果を「みちのく いとしい仏たち」という展覧会の形で社会に直接伝えた点は特筆に値する。研究成果をわかりやすく親しみやすく具体的に公開した本展覧会は、盛岡、京都、東京の3会場で81，000人余の観覧者を得、研究成果「暮らしに寄りそう仏たち」を収載した図録は14，000部以上頒布された。これは本研究の意図と成果が広く社会に受け入れられ共感を呼んだことを証していよう。