Ruined during the Ōnin War in 1467, a wealthy merchant later restored Renge-ji on Ondo-yama (音戸山), employing the monk Tansho (但唱) to create 3m tall granite statues of the 5 Wisdom Buddhas.
By his death 6 years later in 1641 Tanshō had managed to complete 12 images in total.