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