Not currently on display at the V&A

The Five-Holed Flute at the Ploughing of the Emperor’s Field for Grain

Painting
1736-1795
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The Illustrated Regulations for Ceremonial Paraphernalia of the Present Dynasty is an illustrated manuscript commissioned by the Qianlong Emperor (reigned 1736-1795). The main body of the commission began in 1750 and was completed in 1759. It was a conclusion of the Emperor's decade-long efforts to regulate the ritual codes and procedures as a means of ruling since his enthronement.

The page shows a colour illustration of the five-holed flute at the 'ploughing of the Emperor's field for grain' with a caption written in regular script to its right. The caption reads: 'Drawing of the five-holed lute at the "ploughing of the Emperor's field for grain"'.

As a major imperial commission, the book is of monumental scale. As many as 27 court painters and calligraphers were working on the commission under five editors-in-chief, Yilu (1695-1767), Jiang Pu (1708-1761), Wang Youdun (1692-1758), Guanbao (?-1776) and He Guozong (?-1766).

After editing and further expansion, the manuscript was printed by the Palace Publications Office in the Wuying Palace in 1766 It was finally included as part of the Four Treasures imperial library project in 1773. For that purpose seven copies were produced and stored in libraries across the empire.

The book consists of six parts - ceremonial vessels, scientific equipments, dress, musical instruments, insignia and weaponry. They contain more than 1300 leaves of illustrations and explanatory texts.

The V&A’s collection of the manuscript is incomplete. All its leaves, together with those in the British Library, in the National Museums of Scotland and in the National Museum of Ireland, may have been part of the version kept in the Wenyuan Pavilion library in the Yuanming yuan Summer Palace, Beijing.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Titles
  • The Five-Holed Flute at the Ploughing of the Emperor’s Field for Grain (generic title)
  • 清 冷鑒 皇朝禮器圖式:耕藉禾詞樂簫圖 冊 (published title)
Materials and techniques
Ink and colour on silk
Brief description
Page of the illustrated manuscript "The Illustrated Regulations for Ceremonial Paraphernalia of the Present Dynasty." It shows an illustration of the five-holed Flute at the 'ploughing of the Emperor's field for grain' with a caption.
Physical description
A page of "The Illustrated Regulations for Ceremonial Paraphernalia of the Present Dynasty", an illustrated manuscript commissioned by the Qianlong Emperor (r.1736-1795). The book consists of six parts - ceremonial vessels, scientific equipments, dress, musical instruments, insignia, and weaponry, containing more than 1300 leaves of illustrations and explanatory texts. The page shows a colour illustration of the five-holed Flute at the 'ploughing of the Emperor's field for grain' with a caption written in regular script to its right.
Dimensions
  • Height: 42.3cm
  • Width: 41.3cm
Style
Marks and inscriptions
Translation
'drawing of the five-holed Flute at the 'ploughing of the Emperor's field for grain'.'
Object history
Purchased from Walter H Harris and accessioned in 1896. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Asia Department registers, as part of a 2022 provenance research project. A letter from Mr Harris in the V&A archive files states that the leaves were 'taken from the Summer Palace in Pekin' a reference to the Yuanming yuan, the imperial summer retreat located north of Beijing, which was plundered and destroyed by British and French troops during the Second Opium War in 1860. There is no further information in the file as to how Mr Harris acquired the leaves.

The main body of the manuscript commission began in 1750 and it was completed in 1759. As many as twenty-seven court painters and calligraphers were working on the commission under five editors-in-chief, Yilu (1695-1767), Jiang Pu (178-1761), Wang Youdun (1692-1758), Guanbao (?-1776) and He Guozong (?-1766). After editing and further expansion in the ensuing years, the manuscript was printed by the Palace Publications Office in the Wuying Palace in 1766, and it was finally included as part of the Four Treasures imperial library project in 1773. For that purpose seven versions in total were produced and stored in libraries across the empire.

The museum's collection of the manuscript is incomplete. All its leaves, together with those in the British Library, in the National Museums of Scotland and in the National Museum of Ireland, may have been part of the version kept in the Wenyuan Pavilion library in the Yuanming Yuan (Summer Palace), Beijing.

These pages belong to the first of four groups of leaves from the manuscript acquired by the museum.
Production
Reason For Production: Commission
Subjects depicted
Summary
The Illustrated Regulations for Ceremonial Paraphernalia of the Present Dynasty is an illustrated manuscript commissioned by the Qianlong Emperor (reigned 1736-1795). The main body of the commission began in 1750 and was completed in 1759. It was a conclusion of the Emperor's decade-long efforts to regulate the ritual codes and procedures as a means of ruling since his enthronement.

The page shows a colour illustration of the five-holed flute at the 'ploughing of the Emperor's field for grain' with a caption written in regular script to its right. The caption reads: 'Drawing of the five-holed lute at the "ploughing of the Emperor's field for grain"'.

As a major imperial commission, the book is of monumental scale. As many as 27 court painters and calligraphers were working on the commission under five editors-in-chief, Yilu (1695-1767), Jiang Pu (1708-1761), Wang Youdun (1692-1758), Guanbao (?-1776) and He Guozong (?-1766).

After editing and further expansion, the manuscript was printed by the Palace Publications Office in the Wuying Palace in 1766 It was finally included as part of the Four Treasures imperial library project in 1773. For that purpose seven copies were produced and stored in libraries across the empire.

The book consists of six parts - ceremonial vessels, scientific equipments, dress, musical instruments, insignia and weaponry. They contain more than 1300 leaves of illustrations and explanatory texts.

The V&A’s collection of the manuscript is incomplete. All its leaves, together with those in the British Library, in the National Museums of Scotland and in the National Museum of Ireland, may have been part of the version kept in the Wenyuan Pavilion library in the Yuanming yuan Summer Palace, Beijing.
Bibliographic reference
Medley, Margret. "'The Illustrated Regulations for Ceremonial Paraphernalia of the Ch'ing Dynasty' in the Victoria and Albert Museum." in Transactionsof the Oriental Ceramic Society, vol.31, 1957/59, pp.95-105. Liu, Lu. "An Illustrated Manual for Regulating the Qing Society: A Discussion of Several Issues Relating to 'Huangchao liqi tushi'." in Palace Museum Journal (Beijing), no.4. 2004, pp.130-44.
Collection
Accession number
836-1896

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Record createdFebruary 27, 2006
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