(a) wood and cloth puppet decorated with sequins and rabbit (?) fur; represents Shen (sun) Wu K’ung, a monkey; length 16.5 inches; (b) gilted wooden staff; length 8.75 inches. Part of Taoist puppet show.
Donor:
Frank B. Bessac, Phoebe Apperson Hearst, and University Appropriation
Collection place:
Taiwan
Object type:
ethnography
Object class:
Puppets (recreational artifacts)
Accession date:
1909 and 1965
Department:
Asia (except western Russia)
Comment:
Exhibition Plaque: Monkey, carrying his "wishing-staff", is dressed in his "cloud-stepping shoes" and phoenix-plume and gold hat. He has the ability to fly and to transform himself into 72 different things. He stands for the "restless instability of genius".