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Egypt, Middle Kingdom (2040–1648 BCE), Dynasty 12
gold over calcite gesso core
Average: 2.4 cm (15/16 in.)
Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust
Wu Li, a native of Jiangsu province, was a talented painter, poet, and calligrapher. He studied painting with Wang Jian (1598–1677) and Wang Shimin (1592–1680), two of the “Four Wangs,” leaders of the Orthodox school of painting in the early Qing period. Through them, he also absorbed styles of earlier Ming dynasty masters.<br><br>Wu was highly praised by his contemporaries and his paintings were in demand, but his interest in philosophy and religion curtailed his painting activities later in life. Wu Li converted to Christianity and in 1688 was ordained as one of the first 3 Chinese Jesuit priests. He spent the final 30 years of his life primarily in missionary work with the poor.<br><br>Although this painting is undated, the sooty blackness of the ink tones and the easy self-confidence with which they are set down on paper echo recognized late works.
China, Qing dynasty (1644-1911)
Hanging scroll; ink and light color on paper
Image: 109.5 x 25.9 cm (43 1/8 x 10 3/16 in.); Overall: 207 x 44.9 cm (81 1/2 x 17 11/16 in.)
Did you know...
A figure carrying a <em>qin</em>, zither, walks between the buildings, perhaps intending to play music for the two men seated beneath the pines.
John L. Severance Fund
Rocks have long been admired in China as an essential feature in gardens. By the 10th century, small ornamental rocks such as this example were also collected and displayed in the scholar’s study. Either naturally sculpted by erosion or artfully shaped by human hands, such rocks were seen as embodiments of the transformational processes of nature. Rocks were also admired for their resemblance to mountains or caves, particularly the magical peaks and paradise caves believed to be inhabited by immortal beings.
Overall with base: H: 30 11/16 x W: 11 7/8 x D: 6 7/8 in. (78 x 30.1 x 17.5 cm)
Rock: H: 27 13/16 x W: 11 7/8 x D: 6 7/16 in. (70.7 x 30.1 x 16.3 cm)
Base: H: 5 3/8 x W: 9 7/16 x D: 6 7/8 in. (13.6 x 23.9 x 17.5 cm)
medium: black lingbi limestone with white veining
Walters Art Museum, 1998, by gift.
Both continuity and change are reflected in this portrait bust initially carved for a ruler of the Middle Kingdom and then re-carved for a New Kingdom monarch. There was a marked change between the way late 12th Dynasty and mid 19th Dynasty kings were represented. The pharaohs of the 12th Dynasty wished to present an experienced and careworn expression. This is conveyed by heavy eyelids, wrinkles, and a firm set to the mouth. The pharaohs of the 19th Dynasty, however, wanted their images to suggest youth, vigor, and confidence. To transform a Middle Kingdom royal image into a New Kingdom one, sculptors re-carved the face. The eyes, nose, and forehead of this sculpture show evidence of reworking to erase signs of age, while the corners of the mouth were deeply drilled to make the cheeks appear rounder and to bring the lips closer to the slight smile typical of 19th Dynasty royal sculpture.
Egyptian
8 11/16 x 7 5/16 x 4 5/16 in. (22 x 18.5 x 11 cm)
medium: anorthosite gneiss
culture: Egyptian
dynasty: 12th Dynasty, 19th Dynasty
reign: Sesostris III-Amenemhat III, Ramesses II
Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Each of the four gospels in this book opens on a page with brilliantly illuminated borders depicting the author of the text as well as birds-principally peacocks, symbols of the immortality of the soul-and fountains, representing the fountain of life and the salvation of the soul. This volume consists of 428 leaves with texts in Greek. Its level of sophistication suggests that it was probably written and decorated in a monastery in Constantinople.
Byzantium, Constantinople
ink, tempera, and gold on vellum; leather binding
Sheet: 28 x 23 cm (11 x 9 1/16 in.)
Did you know...
Gospel Books were carried in procession through Byzantine churches.
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
Francis William Edmonds
American, Hudson, New York 1806–1863 Bronxville, New York
Cover: 6 5/8 x 8 1/4 in. (16.8 x 21 cm)
Sheets: 6 5/8 x 8 1/4 in. (16.8 x 21 cm)
medium: Drawings in graphite and pen and brown ink on off-white wove paper, bound in marbled paper with leather spine and corners
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY 1987.196.3 1987
Sheila and Richard J. Schwartz Fund, 1987
These works by the French sculptor Claude Michel, called Clodion, show a pair of young satyrs. Clodion was fond of depicting characters from classical antiquity in his work, and the subject of child or baby satyrs in Bacchanalian celebrations appears often in the work of Rococo artists. The female satyr wraps a plump arm around a nest filled with baby birds, while her male counterpart holds an owl. Balancing on one foot, the two flee the scene of their theft.
France, 18th century
terracotta
Overall: 32.1 x 14.8 x 18.1 cm (12 5/8 x 5 13/16 x 7 1/8 in.); with base: 45.1 cm (17 3/4 in.)
The Elisabeth Severance Prentiss Collection
The day tr.im died! Went to check my links and bam got this notice.
So much loyalty wasted on URL shorteners! Who is going to quit next?
Now I don't trust any of them.
Each of the four gospels in this book opens on a page with brilliantly illuminated borders depicting the author of the text as well as birds-principally peacocks, symbols of the immortality of the soul-and fountains, representing the fountain of life and the salvation of the soul. This volume consists of 428 leaves with texts in Greek. Its level of sophistication suggests that it was probably written and decorated in a monastery in Constantinople.
Byzantium, Constantinople
ink, tempera, and gold on vellum; leather binding
Sheet: 28 x 23 cm (11 x 9 1/16 in.)
Did you know...
Gospel Books were carried in procession through Byzantine churches.
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund