Rare and distinctive portraits of the Chinese Chan Buddhist master Daoyan (1335-1418), also known as Yao Guangxiao, and of the Tibetan Buddhist master Shakya Yeshe (1354-1439) speak to the influence of Buddhism at the early Ming court, document the tangible rewards conferred on eminent Buddhist clerics by early Ming emperors, and reflect the cosmopolitan character of belief in the Ming capital cities, Nanjing and Beijing. Produced in different mediums--painting, embroidery, and tapestry (kesi)--these portraits convey the opulence of the Buddhist material culture that was created by the court for favored individuals and monasteries in China and was transmitted in various permutations beyond the Chinese frontiers through a transnational network of Buddhist monasteries that stretched eastward to Japan and westward to the Himalayas. Considered together, these very different images illuminate the use of the Buddhist art, ritual objects, and material goods in early Ming domestic politics and international relations.

Photo caption: Portrait of Daoyan (a.k.a.Yao Guangxiao), Hanging scroll, ink and colors on silk, Ming Dynasty, Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing