Black Bull, second half 19th century, Mochizuki Gyokusen, Japanese, 1834 - 1913, 60 1/4 × 67 in. (153.04 × 170.18 cm) (image), Ink, color, and gold on paper, Japan, 19th century, Oxen, one of the 12 kinds of animals in the Chinese zodiac, have been valued as beasts of burden in Japan since prehistoric times. After Buddhism arrived in the mid-6th century, oxen emerged as emblems of Zen Buddhism, particularly in the Ten Oxherding Songs, a series of Zen parables describing the disciples journey from initiation to enlightenment.