A radical writhing character for dragon dating from the Edo period recently mounted in green brocade extended in patterned blue retaining the original bone rollers. It is ink on paper, signed Nyoren. The scroll is 36 x 178 cm (14 x 70 inches) and in excellent condition.
Nyoren Osho (no dates, also known as Daiin) was famous for rebuilding the original Main Hall (Hondo) of Jinryuji Temple in the domain of the Tsuchiya clan, near modern day Tsukuba, completed in 1833. He came to Tsukuba at the age of 31 as head preist of Kakuo-ji. He was then made the head of the official temple of the Daimyo of the Fief, the Tsuchiya family Temple of Jinryuji, which he restored to the greatness of its Muromachi era beginnings. When he would receive a donation from a citizen of the city, in return he would give them a calligraphic image of a dragon. His radical calligraphic characters can still be seen on the sign over the gate of the Temple. They were called Hifuse-ryu because they were believed on a number of occasions to have magically saved houses from fires.
