Along the River During Ching Ming Festival
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Along the River During Ching Ming Festival (Traditional Chinese: 清明上河圖; Simplified Chinese: 清明上河图; pinyin: Qīngmīng Shànghé Tú) was the work of Song Dynasty artist, Zhang Zeduan. The painting captures the daily life of people from the Song period at the capital, Pien Jing (today's Kaifeng). The theme celebrates Ching Ming Festival (Qingming Festival). The entire piece was painted in handscroll format and the content reveals the lifestyle of all stratum of the society (from rich to poor) as well as different economic activities in rural areas and the city. It offers glimpse of the custumes and architecture during the period. As an artistic creation, the piece has been well revered and over the centuries, court artists of subsequent dynasties have reproduced several versions.
The Qingming Scroll is historically notable as one of the few paintings from the former imperial collection that is still in the possession of Mainland China; it was a particular favorite of emperor Puyi, who took it with him to Manchukuo and thus kept the Southern Song Dynasty original (24.8 by 528.7 cm[1]) out of the collection of the National Palace Museum. It was later re-purchased in 1945 and is now held at the Palace Museum in the Forbidden City.
Several other copies by artists of subsequent dynasties[2], including a 1736 reproduction (35.6 by 1152.8 cm) by five Qing Dynasty court painters, were moved to Taiwan along with the National Palace Museum in 1949. The Song dynasty original is regarded as a national treasure by Chinese authorities and only exhibited for brief periods every few years.
Contents |
[edit] Translation
Scholars have disputed the accuracy of the translation of painting's name; the word "Qingming" can refer to either the Qingming Festival or to peace and order, two translations have been proposed by scholars: Going Upriver on the Qingming Festival or Peace Reigns Over the River.
Traditionally, three things have been believed about the painting:
- The city depicted is Kaifeng.
- It was painted before the fall of the Northern Song Dynasty in 1127.
- It depicts the Qingming Festival.
More recent scholarship challenges all three of those assertions:
- The city depicted is an idealized non-existent city.
- It was painted after the fall of the Northern Song Dynasty in 1127.
- It depicts a scene in early fall.
[edit] References
- Valerie Hansen, "The Mystery of the Qingming Scroll and Its Subject: The Case Against Kaifeng," Journal of Sung-Yuan Studies 26 (1996), 183-200.
 |
 |
[edit] See also
National Palace Museum Description of "Along the River During Ching Ming Festival"
