Amitayus Buddha
Painting
01/01/1860 - 31/12/1949 (made)
01/01/1860 - 31/12/1949 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This hanging scroll shows Amitayus Buddha seated in lotus position on a lotus throne, accompanied by a section of text from the popular Heart of Prajnaparamita Sutra.The Buddha image was depicted in ink and colour in a meticulously descriptive style, while the Heart Sutra text was transcribed in gold in regular script.
The painting is signed Ding Guanpeng and Liang Guozhi, and dated the eighth day of the fourth month (26 May), namely the Buddha's birthday, in 1784. Both artists served at the imperial court during the Qianlong reign (1735-1795) and were favoured by the emperor who himself was a devoted Buddhist. On the first and fifteenth day of each month in his later years the emperor would copy out this Sutra. However, the artistic quality of the Buddha image, the style of the calligraphy and the imperial seal all suggest that the work is not genuine.
The painting is signed Ding Guanpeng and Liang Guozhi, and dated the eighth day of the fourth month (26 May), namely the Buddha's birthday, in 1784. Both artists served at the imperial court during the Qianlong reign (1735-1795) and were favoured by the emperor who himself was a devoted Buddhist. On the first and fifteenth day of each month in his later years the emperor would copy out this Sutra. However, the artistic quality of the Buddha image, the style of the calligraphy and the imperial seal all suggest that the work is not genuine.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Amitayus Buddha (popular title) |
| Materials and techniques | Ink and colour on silk |
| Brief description | Pap, China, paintings and drawings. Hanging scroll, spuriously signed Ding Guanpeng, (active ca, 1750-1758), ink and colour on silk. |
| Physical description | Amitayus Buddha, seated in lotus position on a lotus throne. It is depicted in ink and colour on silk, spuriously signed and sealed. Accompanied by a section of text from The Heart of Prajnaparamita Sutra. The text is written in gold in regular script form, spuriously signed Liang Guozhi. It also bears a fictitous seal of Emperor Qianlong. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Marks and inscriptions | Signature and seal, inscription of a section of text from The Heart of Prajnaparamita Sutra, the calligrapher's signature and seal, and a collecting seal.
|
| Object history | The work was acquired by Martin Buxton (d.1966) in China in 1940s/50s, when he served as a British diplomat. It was part of a group of eight Chinese scrolls (FE.5-12-1970) the museum purchased from the Buxton family. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Association | |
| Summary | This hanging scroll shows Amitayus Buddha seated in lotus position on a lotus throne, accompanied by a section of text from the popular Heart of Prajnaparamita Sutra.The Buddha image was depicted in ink and colour in a meticulously descriptive style, while the Heart Sutra text was transcribed in gold in regular script. The painting is signed Ding Guanpeng and Liang Guozhi, and dated the eighth day of the fourth month (26 May), namely the Buddha's birthday, in 1784. Both artists served at the imperial court during the Qianlong reign (1735-1795) and were favoured by the emperor who himself was a devoted Buddhist. On the first and fifteenth day of each month in his later years the emperor would copy out this Sutra. However, the artistic quality of the Buddha image, the style of the calligraphy and the imperial seal all suggest that the work is not genuine. |
| Bibliographic reference | Osvald Siren, Chinese Painting, Leading Masters and Principles (London, 1958), vol. VII, p. 412. A biography of Liang Guozhi, see Arthur W. Hummel, ed., Eminent Chinese of the Ch'ing Dynasty (Washington, 1943), p. 501. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | FE.5-1970 |
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| Record created | July 6, 2006 |
| Record URL |
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