Bowl Gong (Kin)

Kin (bowl gong), Japan, ca. 1870 (NMM 5561). This hammered-bronze bowl gong rests on a blue cushion in a red-lacquered wooden stand with bronze plaque fittings. Gongs such as this, with their openings oriented upward, are played in tandem with the temple block, or mokugyo. The rim is struck with a wooden mallet wrapped in leather (resting on top of the gong in this image) to punctuate Zen Buddhist temple music. In geza, the off-stage music of the kabuki theater tradition in Japan, the kin evokes temple scenes. The gong and stand, as seen here, stand approximately four feet tall.