Pictures of Ancient Playthings
Painting
1729 (Painted)
1729 (Painted)
| Place of origin |
This long handscroll was made for the Yongzheng emperor (reigned 1723–35) as a kind of pictorial inventory of his palace collections. It depicts some 250 ceramics, jade and hardstone carvings, bronzes, root wood and other kinds of curios. In the painting the court artist, or artists, incorporated European techniques of perspective and shading.
Object details
| Object type | |
| Titles |
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| Materials and techniques | Ink and colour on paper. The discs on the roller ends is ivory dyed green. |
| Brief description | Gu Wan Tu 古玩圖 (Pictures of Ancient Playthings), handscroll, ink and colours on paper, China, Qing, 1729 |
| Physical description | This handscroll depicts ceramics, jades, bronze vessels and curios in other media owned by the Qing Yongzheng Emperor (r.1723-35). The objects are painted in ink and colours on paper in a realistic style, suspended against an unpainted backdrop. The roller ends are made of ivory that has been dyed green. The scroll's title slip is written in clear regular script. |
| Dimensions |
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| Object history | Purchased from Capt. J.S. Rivett-Carnac, accessioned in 1911. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Asia Department registers, as part of a 2022 provenance research project. Purchased from Capt. J.S. Rivett-Carnac, 1911 |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This long handscroll was made for the Yongzheng emperor (reigned 1723–35) as a kind of pictorial inventory of his palace collections. It depicts some 250 ceramics, jade and hardstone carvings, bronzes, root wood and other kinds of curios. In the painting the court artist, or artists, incorporated European techniques of perspective and shading. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.59-1911 |
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| Record created | December 20, 2005 |
| Record URL |
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