A Han Dynasty Envoy Navigating on a Tree-Raft / Yu Zhiding (Yü Chih-ting)

Viewer

Actions

file_download Download image 117 x 183 (JPEG) 234 x 366 (JPEG) 468 x 732 (JPEG) 937 x 1465 (JPEG)

About this Item

Record Details

Accession Number
1985/2.30
Title
A Han Dynasty Envoy Navigating on a Tree-Raft
Artist Nationality
Chinese
Artist Life Dates
1647 - circa 1705
Object Creation Date
1696
Object Creation Place
Asia (continent)
China (nation)
Jiangsu (province)
Yangzhou
Creation Place 1
Asia (continent)
Creation Place 2
China (nation)
Creation Place 3
Jiangsu (province)
Creation Place 4
Yangzhou
Inscription
Inscription and signature of the artist: "On the Dragon Boat Festival Day [the 5th day of the 5th month] of the bingzi year (1696) of Kangxi's reign. Yu Zhiding of Guanglin. [followed by two seals of the artist]
Dimensions
154.2 cm x 99.1 cm (60 11/16 in. x 39 in.)
Century
17th century
Primary Object Classification
Painting
Primary Object Type
hanging scroll
Secondary Object Classification
Painting
Secondary Object Type
figures on landscape
Physical Description
This is a dense but muted landscape painting. The lines are very well defined. The colors consit of muted greens and browns, with a bid of red in some places. There is a river flowing through the center of the painting, running down the landscape and toward the viewer. There is a figure sitting on a gnarled tree-raft towards the bottom left of the painting, with another figure looking upon the scene from the opposite bank of the river. There are ornate buildings present toward the top of the panting. The viewer can see a lone figure in an interior covered by stylized clouds.
Subject Matter
This painting refers to the legend of Zhang Qian (active 139–87 BCE), who was ordered by the emperor to find the source of the Yellow River, the second longest in China. Zhang Qian navigated up the river on a raft, eventually reaching the Milky Way. There he met two celestial beings, the Herd Boy/cowherd with his buffalo (the figures at right) and the Weaver Maiden (the woman in the pavilion), whose stars appear together in the sky on only one night of the year—the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. When a court astronomer of the time observed a change in the configuration of these stars, it was taken as a sign that Zhang Qian had accomplished his mission.
Yu Zhiding came from a humble background with no documented formal training in painting. He rose quickly, however, to become a portrait painter of elite scholars and high officials. His mastery of portraiture may be seen here in the clearly defined features of the human faces and the exquisite brushwork of the buildings, figures, trees, and rocks.
Secondary Keywords
upward
animals and creatures
bodies of water and components of bodies of water
buildings and the land
components of bodies of water
displacement vessels
dwellings
landforms
landforms and landform components
landforms by shape or position
landscapes (environments)
mammals
natural landscapes
objects we use
people
people (agents)
people and culture
people by state or condition
plants
residential structures
settlements and landscapes
single built works
single built works by function
single built works by specific type
surface craft
transportation vehicles
vegetation and vegetation components
vegetation components
vehicles
visual works
visual works by subject type
watercraft
watercraft by displacement
watercraft by operating environment
watercraft by specific type
woody plants
Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/about/services/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.

Technical Details

Image Size
937 x 1465
File Size
164 KB
Record
1985/2.30
Link to this Item
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1985-sl-2.30/1985_2.30.jpg

Rights and Permissions

Portfolios

Manifest
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:1985-SL-2.30:1985_2.30.JPG

Cite this Item

View the Help Guide for more information.

Full citation
"A Han Dynasty Envoy Navigating on a Tree-Raft; Yu Zhiding (Yü Chih-ting)." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1985-sl-2.30/1985_2.30.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed March 28, 2024.
Do you have questions about this content? Need to report a problem? Please contact us.