Japan: The bodhisattva Fudo Myoo. Lacquered Japanese cypress, gold, and kirikane, inlaid with crystal. Kamakura Period (1185–1333), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Fudo Myoo is a boddhisattva – a popular deity in Japanese Buddhism – who is generally represented with a fearsome face appearing in a wreath of flames. This symbolizes the immense effort humans have to make to battle passions and worldly desires.

Kirikane is a decorative technique used for Buddhist statues and paintings, using gold leaf, silver leaf, platinum leaf cut into lines, diamonds and triangles.

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