Origin of a Japanese Saint

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 223, 21 September 1936, Page 10

Origin of a Japanese Saint

The city < r . Rotterdam is this year celebrating the 3Coth anniversary of the birth of her great son, the humanist, Erasmus of Rotterdam. J he museum of lokio is presenting the city with a statue carved out of wood representing Erasmus. During years unnumbered there has stood in an ancient Japanese temple, the statue of a saint, whom the priests railed “Katekisama.” When the stacue was discovered, B was positively affirm ed that it belonged to the European Reformation period and it was brought to Tikio because of its value as a work of ail (Duly ve— recently the fact became

. known that it was not the figure of any Christian saint at all, but that of the Lacmus < r Erasmus, who is iduo likable from pa rdiugs of Holbein and burer. .The statue, it’m’d out, had bs- n !nought out as a galley-figure a merchant snip uaveiling in 1598 from Rotterdam tv Japan. The ship re mat i-d in Japan and there unrigged and dismantled. Ar. opu.eut l amily placed it in <; temp e and thus did Erasnin bec.0 T ?e a Bnddist saint enshrined in a •fapatese t.mple And now. after mote than 40-J v • this image o* Liter’s ~aty returns to its native city