Home›Sacred Objects, Dress & Symbols›Sacred Art & Iconography›Figure of Guan Yu, a Guardian Deity (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 63.213.11)Sacred Art & IconographyFigure of Guan Yu, a Guardian Deity (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 63.213.11)Biscuit ceramic with polychrome enamels, China, Qing dynasty, Metropolitan Museum of Art 63.213.11Citation FormatsGeneral ReferenceGeneral Reference Citation TextDivinity Atlas. "Figure of Guan Yu, a Guardian Deity (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 63.213.11)." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://divinity.interactivelion.com/sacred-art-iconography/guanyu-guardian-figure-met-63-213-11.Copy General ReferenceAPA StyleAPA Style Citation TextDivinity Atlas. (n.d.). Figure of Guan Yu, a Guardian Deity (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 63.213.11). Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://divinity.interactivelion.com/sacred-art-iconography/guanyu-guardian-figure-met-63-213-11Copy APA StyleBibTeXBibTeX Citation Text@misc{divinityatlas-figure-of-guan-yu-a-guardian-deity-metro, author = {Divinity Atlas}, title = {Figure of Guan Yu, a Guardian Deity (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 63.213.11)}, year = {2026}, url = {https://divinity.interactivelion.com/sacred-art-iconography/guanyu-guardian-figure-met-63-213-11}, note = {Accessed August 30, 2026} }Copy BibTeXScriptural and Theological TraditionVerifiedA Qing dynasty biscuit ceramic figure with polychrome enamels titled "Figure of Guan Yu, a guardian deity," 19th century, Jingdezhen ware. Guan Yu is shown in the armored, red-faced form standard to his cult as a deified general and guardian of loyalty and righteousness. Held today by the Metropolitan Museum of Art under accession 63.213.11, Asian Art department.FactsCross-Tradition ConnectionsSourcesComments (0)Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)FactsOriginsCreationWell-attested1800 to 1899 1Date of CreationWell-attested19th century 1CountryWell-attestedChina 1Subject MatterDepicted SubjectWell-attestedGuan Yu, the deified general of the Three Kingdoms period venerated as a guardian deity 1CustodyCurrent LocationWell-attestedThe Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York 1Current CustodianWell-attestedThe Metropolitan Museum of Art 1Custody HistoryWell-attestedGift of Edwin C. Vogel, 1963 1AttributionsTraditionWell-attestedChinese folk religion and Daoism (with later Buddhist assimilation as a guardian figure) 1Physical FormMediumWell-attestedBiscuit with polychrome enamels (Jingdezhen ware) 1DimensionsWell-attestedH. 7 7/8 in. (20 cm); W. 5 in. (12.7 cm); D. 3 1/2 in. (8.9 cm) 1Rights and ReproductionReproduction and CopyrightWell-attestedThe Metropolitan Museum of Art has designated this work as being in the public domain and makes it available through its Open Access policy; no permission is required for reproduction. 1Cross-Tradition ConnectionsBelongs to TraditionChinese Folk Religion, Religions Well-attested Source Figure of Guan Yu, a guardian deity, accession 63.213.11 (Metropolitan Museum of Art)tier 1DepictsGuan Yu, Deities Well-attested The Met's own title for this figure names the subject outright, "Figure of Guan Yu, a guardian deity," a narrative identification rather than a bare tag.Source Figure of Guan Yu, a guardian deity, accession 63.213.11 (Metropolitan Museum of Art)tier 1Sources1. Figure of Guan Yu, a guardian deity, accession 63.213.11 (Metropolitan Museum of Art)tier 1Metropolitan Museum of Artaccession 63.213.11View the SourceComments (0)No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.Sign in to join the discussion.Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.View At A Past YearChoose a year to see this entry's facts and connections as the atlas records them at that moment: what it held then, what it held instead, and what it had not yet adopted. Choose Present for the current record.YearPresent1800Show This Year