Quatrain by Jia Dao (779-843) in running-standard script 民國肅親王善耆行楷書賈島五言絕句詩軸

Object Details

• Artist

  Shanqi 肅親王善耆 (1866-1922)

• Label

  Prince Su served the last two Qing dynasty (1644–1911) emperors, Guangxu (reigned 1875–1908) and Xuantong (reigned 1908–11), in both military and civil positions. After the collapse of the Qing dynasty, Prince Su remained loyal to the emperor. His calligraphy is fluent and elegant, as seen in the famous poem by the Tang poet Jia Dao (779–843) he inscribed for a friend:

  Asked the boy under the pine

  His master is gathering herbs

  For sure in this mountain

  Somewhere deep in the clouds

• Provenance

  To 1998

  Robert Hatfield Ellsworth (born 1929), New York City, to 1998

  From 1998

  Freer Gallery of Art, given by Robert Hatfield Ellsworth in 1998 [1]

  Notes:

  [1]

  All Chinese calligraphy in the gift were published in Mr. Ellsworth's Later Chinese Painting and Calligraphy: 1800-1950, vol. 3 (New York: Random House, 1986) (according to Curatorial Note 4, Joseph Chang, May 19, 1998, in the object record).

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Children at Play in Chinese Painting (November 14, 2009 to May 23, 2010)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Robert Hatfield Ellsworth (1929-2014)

• Origin

  China

• Credit Line

  Gift of Robert Hatfield Ellsworth in honor of the 75th Anniversary of the Freer Gallery of Art

• Type

  Calligraphy

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

  The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1920s, 1910s

• Name

  Ellsworth, Robert Hatfield

• Place

  China

• Topic

  Art, Chinese Art, Qing dynasty (1644 - 1911), Robert Hatfield Ellsworth collection, Poetry, Modern period (1912 - present)

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Calligraphy (visual works)