kyōshoku 胸飾

Also read munakazari, or kyōtetsu 胸綴. An ornament found on the breast of *bosatsu 菩薩, *myōō 明王, and *ten 天 sculpted images. The ornament was hung around the neck, and took the form of a flat decorative plate, or a chain of metals or precious stones. A jeweled string *yōraku 瓔珞 was often hung from the kyōshoku. On wooden statues, kyōshoku were carved from the same block as the main image, or made separately in metal and attached, as on Kudara Kannonzō 百済観音像 (late 6th-early 7th century) in Hōryūji Daihōzōden 法隆寺大宝蔵殿, Nara.