benevolent fire box

This style of fire call box which is all over New York, reminds me of Japanese Buddhist sculptures of Kannon, Goddess of Mercy. (note: the Chinese style of Guan Yin is somewhat different) There is one example in my neighborhood that is particularly lovely -- very old with peeling paint -- that is, to me, so similar to various standing examples of this deity. Similarities in form: the "pose," the overall boxy shape, the surface texture, the crowning finial.

Kannon generally takes on a gentle female form, protecting living beings with loving compassion, but the Bodhisattva can also take on a an angry fiery form (fiery!), Bato Kannon, or horse-faced Kannon. I will show you more photo comparisons. I am particularly fixated on this thought. For now, this photo of a firebox near Koreatown, and Thousand-Armed Kannon at Kiyomizu-dera in Kyoto.