Seven Scholars Going through the Pass

Object Details

• Artist

  Formerly attributed to Li Tang 李唐 (ca. 1050s-after 1130)

• Calligrapher

  Frontispiece by Cheng Nanyun (ca. 1400-ca. 1450)

• Label

  Accompanied by a small group of retainers on foot, seven gentlemen riding mules, horses, and an ox leave behind the gate of a pass and casually proceed along a wintry riverbank. Six of the men are dressed against the cold in identical white robes and wide-brimmed hats worn over dark shoulder-length hoods, while the seventh is clad in gray and wears an official's black cap. Some of the men turn to talk with each other, gesturing with their whips, but there is no urgency in their manner. The bundles of scrolls, umbrellas, and food utensils carried by the retainers--together with the ubiquitous wrapped qin (zither)--suggest that the group is venturing forth on a daytrip to some nearby scenic location.

• Provenance

  To 1916

  Li Wenqing (late 19th-early 20th century), Shanghai, to 1916 [1]

  From 1916 to 1919

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Li Wenqing, in New York, in 1916 [2]

  From 1920

  Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]

  Notes:

  [1] See Original Kakemono and Makimono List, L. 1029, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. This object exhibits seals, colophons, or inscriptions that could provide additional information regarding the object’s history; see Curatorial Remarks in the object record for further details.

  [2] See note 1.

  [3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Looking Out, Looking In: Art in Late Imperial China (October 14, 2017 - ongoing)

  Guests of the Hills: Travelers in Chinese Landscape Painting (August 23, 2008 to March 15, 2009)

  Masterpieces of Chinese Calligraphy (June 7, 1994 to March 20, 1995)

  From Concept to Context: Approaches to Asian and Islamic Calligraphy (July 28, 1986 to February 6, 1987)

  Chinese Figure Painting (September 17, 1973 to January 3, 1975)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Li Wenqing 李文卿 (ca. 1869-1931) (C.L. Freer source)

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

• Origin

  China

• Credit Line

  Gift of Charles Lang Freer

• Type

  Painting

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1400s

• Name

  Freer, Charles Lang, Li, Wenqing

• Place

  China

• Topic

  Description and travel, Charles Lang Freer collection, Landscapes, Art, Animals, Scholar, Mule, Chinese Art, Oxen, Horses, Ming dynasty (1368 - 1644)

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Paintings