About this artwork
This all-female ensemble is an imperial or aristocratic orchestra. Singly or in pairs, the musicians play the large drum, clapper, oboe, vertical flute, transverse flute, hourglass drum, mouth organ, gong-chime, long zither, angular harp, and lute. Such instruments accurately represent those played by the mid- Tang dynasty (eighth century), as known today from surviving artifacts and textural descriptions of the Imperial Conservatory of Music. The audience for this concert strikingly resembles court figures depicted in The Night Revels of Han Xizai, a painting in the Palace Museum, Beijing, attributed to the tenth century painter Gu Hongzhong. Gu Hongzhong was a contemporary of Zhou Wenju, to whom this handscroll was originally ascribed. The artist responsible for this fifteenth-century painting apparently drew upon a number of earlier artistic models, creating a composite image that recalled the work of past centuries.
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Status
- Currently Off View
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Department
- Arts of Asia
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Artist
- Zhou Wenju
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Title
- United by Music 合樂圖
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Place
- China (Object made in)
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Date
- 1401–1425
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Medium
- Handscroll; ink and colors on silk
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Inscriptions
- Inscription on Painting: 唐周文矩合樂圖無上神品也 Seal: 緝熙殿寶
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Dimensions
- 41.9 × 184.2 cm (16 1/2 × 72 9/16 in.)
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Credit Line
- Kate S. Buckingham Endowment Fund
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Reference Number
- 1950.1370
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IIIF Manifest
- https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/72380/manifest.json
Extended information about this artwork
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.
