Bonseki
/boʊnˈseɪki/noun
A Japanese art of creating miniature landscapes with sand and stones arranged on a tray.
Did you know?Unlike bonsai, a bonseki landscape is deliberately temporary: its sand-and-stone world may be dismantled after being viewed, embodying the Buddhist idea of impermanence.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Chinese
Chinese
盆
“A tray, basin, or shallow container”
Classical Chinese
Chinese
石
“Stone or rock”
Medieval Japanese
Japanese
盆 (bon)
“Tray or shallow vessel, borrowed from Chinese”
Medieval Japanese
Japanese
石 (seki)
“Stone or rock, from Sino-Japanese vocabulary”
Muromachi–Edo periods
Japanese
盆石 (bonseki)
“A tray arrangement of stones and sand representing a miniature landscape”
Modern English
English
bonseki
“The Japanese art of making temporary miniature landscapes on trays”