The brass tablet, called a fumi-e, was made in the 17th century as a tool to expose Christians. It was securely locked in the magistrate’s office to prevent it from becoming an object of worship. How was this brass fumi-e – literally, a treading picture – used? Its story tells much of the social conditions of the time, the lives of the people, and the place of religion in society.

The Virgin and Child (the Virgin with Rosary)