Sutra box, anonymous, c. 1200 - c. 1400
wood, lacquer, mother-of-pearl, silver, h 34cm × w 49.5cm × d 27.5cm More details
In the late 13th century the rulers of Korea started a project to make boxes for sutras, or Buddhist texts. Only a few of these boxes have survived, all decorated with a dense pattern of leafwork, inlaid with silver and mother-of-pearl. Inlaid Chinese characters by one of the handles show which sutra was kept in the box.