Wooden sign painted with a demon's face, China

Made:
1801-1900 in China
Large wooden shield painted with demon's face

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Large wooden shield painted with demon's face
Science Museum Group Collection
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Large wooden sign, painted with a demons face, with raffia hanging loop, hung outside house to keep away evil spirits, China, 1801-1900

A wooden sign painted with a demon's face, hung over doors in China to scare away demons. In ancient China people believed that spirits, ancestors and demons could interfere with the body and cause illness. This idea has existed in some form in Chinese medical traditions for most of the last two thousand years.

Details

Category:
Asian Medicine
Collection:
Sir Henry Wellcome's Museum Collection
Object Number:
A639108
Materials:
complete, paint, paper (fibre product), wood (unidentified) and cane
Measurements:
overall (standing upright): 650 mm x 400 mm x 80 mm, 2.77 kg
type:
shield

Parts

Wooden sign painted with a demon's face, China

Wooden sign painted with a demon's face, China

Large wooden sign, painted with a demons face, with raffia hanging loop, hung outside house to keep away evil spirits, China, 1801-1900

More

A wooden sign painted with a demon's face, hung over doors in China to scare away demons. In ancient China people believed that spirits, ancestors and demons could interfere with the body and cause illness. This idea has existed in some form in Chinese medical traditions for most of the last two thousand years.

Measurements:
overall: 645 mm x 380 mm x 23 mm, 2.775kg
Materials:
wood and cane
Object Number:
A639108/1
type:
shield
Image ©
The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum
Sign for keeping away evil spirits, China, 1801-1900

Sign for keeping away evil spirits, China, 1801-1900

Raffia hanging loop, for large wooden sign, painted with a demons face, hung outside house to keep away evil spirits, China, 1801-1900

More

A wooden sign painted with a demon's face, hung over doors in China to scare away demons. In ancient China people believed that spirits, ancestors and demons could interfere with the body and cause illness. This idea has existed in some form in Chinese medical traditions for most of the last two thousand years.

Measurements:
overall: 645 mm x 380 mm x 23 mm,
Materials:
complete and natural fibre (unspecified)
Object Number:
A639108/2
type:
shield
Image ©
The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

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