CHINE, DEBUT DE LA DYNASTIE MING, XVEME SIECLE

Luohan, also known as Arhats or 'Destroyers of the Passions', vary in numbers between 16 and 108 and were depicted in Chinese art from the Tang dynasty onwards. As Buddha’s apostles, Luohan were first mentioned as sixteen Arhats in the Mahayanavataraka which was translated into Chinese in AD 437. A full transcript of these sixteen names was given in AD 653 by the pilgrim monk Xuan Zang with the additional two that were probably adopted by the end of the 10th century, these being the Arhats who tamed the Dragon and the Tiger representing Eastern and Western directions respectively.
They are usually treated as a form of portraiture in which individual features and personality traits are highlighted.