Three Wise Monkeys - Origin

One of the things I like about the Three Wise Monkeys is that their origin is not absolutely clear. The probably eldest caving is over the door of the 17th century shrine in Japan, Nicco. However, there is evidence that the history of the proverbial principle "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" goes back even to the 8th century and the Tendai-Buddhist legend. Other theories claim that the saying initiated from a very similar Chinese phrase.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Hear_speak_see_no_evil_Toshogu.jpg