Along the River During the Qingming Festival,Artist Zhang Zeduan Year 10851145 Type Panoramic painting Dimensions 25.5 cm 525 cm (10.0 in 207 in) Location Palace Museum, Beijing,Along the River During the Qingming Festival is a panoramic painting generally attributed to the Song Dynasty artist Zhang Zeduan. It captures the daily life of people from the Song period at the capital, Bianjing, todays Kaifeng. The theme celebrates the festive spirit and worldly commotion at the Qingming Festival, rather than the holidays ceremonial aspects, such as tomb sweeping and prayers. The entire piece was painted in hand scroll format and the content reveals the lifestyle of all levels of the society from rich to poor as well as different economic activities in rural areas and the city. As an artistic creation, the piece has been revered and court artists of subsequent dynasties have made several re-interpretive replicas. The painting is also known for its geometrically accurate images of boats, bridges, shops, and scenery. Because of its fame, it has been called “Chinas Mona Lisa“.,Along the River During the Qingming Festival,Similar to the Mona Lisa, the Qingming scroll was sold, changing hands among numerous private owners, before it finally returned to public ownership. The Qingming scroll is notable historically as being among the paintings from the former imperial collection that remain in public ownership in mainland China; it was a particular favorite of emperor Puyi, who took it with him to Manchukuo and thus kept the Song Dynasty original out of the collection of the National Palace Museum. It was later re-purchased in 1945 and kept at the Palace Museum in the Forbidden City.,About 20 to 30 variations on this topic by artists of subsequent dynasties were made. Several Ming and Qing versions can be found in public and private collections around the world. Each version follows the overall composition of the original fairly faithfully, however, the details often vary widely. The Song Dynasty original and the Qing version, in the Beijing and Taipei Palace Museums respectively, are regarded as national treasures and are exhibited only for brief periods every few years. For instance, the wait in Beijing to see the painting was three and a half hours.,Features of the Song original,In the 5.28-meter long picture, there are 814 humans, 28 boats, 60 animals, 30 buildings, 20 vehicles, nine sedan chairs, and 170 trees drawn.The countryside and the densely populated city are the two main sections in the picture, with the river meandering through the entire length.,The right section is the rural area of the city. There are crop fields and unhurried rural folkpredominately farmers, goatherds, and pig herdersin bucolic scenery. A country path broadens into a road and joins with the city road.,Section of the painting on the far right, showing travelers amidst a wooded countryside,A scene of boats docking along the side of the river and urban sprawl approaching the main gate of the city,The bridge scene where the crew of an oncoming boat have not yet fully lowered their sails and are in danger of crashing into the bridge,Scene of urban sprawl right before the bridge leading to the main gate of the city,The main gate of the city and the urban setting within, with teahouses, vendors, homes, and various figures interacting with one another,Hosting,In a rare move, the Song original was exhibited in Hong Kong from 29 June to mid-August 2007 to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Hong Kongs transfer to the Peoples Republic of China. It is estimated that the costs of shipping the painting have run into the millions of Hong Kong dollars in addition to the cost of insuring this piece of priceless art, which is estimated to be in the tens of millions of Hong Kong dollars. From January 224, 2012, the painting was exhibited in the Tokyo National Museum as the centerpiece of a special exhibition to mark the 40th anniversary of normalized diplomatic relations between China and Japan, with the Japanese museum officials providing the “highest security standards“ for the work,Associated poem,蜀錦裝金壁 A wall of gold has been mounted on Shu brocade. 吳工聚碎金 Craftsmen from Wu collect spare change. 謳歌萬井富 To pay tribute to the abundance of a myriad of families. 城闕九重深 The watchtowers of the city rise to great heights. 盛事誠觀止 The bustling scene is truly impressive. 遺踪借探尋 It is a chance to explore vestiges of bygone days. 當時誇豫大 At that time, people marveled at the size of Yu, 此日歎徽欽 And now, we lament the fates of Hui and Qin.,Thank you,