National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

Sec. ii] LIST OF PAINTINGS, TEXTILES, ETC., FROM CH`IEN-FO-TUNG WI I

Head-piece of coarse cream-coloured silk painted with green lotus and leaves upon orange ground ; streamers and binding of head-piece of dull n yrtle-green silk orn. with running scroll of leaves and flowers in blackish paste ; one end of head-piece binding replaced by dull red silk ; suspension loop of same. Weighting-board covered with fine buff silk damask, woven in all-over variety of key pattern, and stencilled with open lotus and leaves in same black paste.

Subject : Avalokilesvara (Kuan-yin) with scarlet lotus and flask. Fig. sweeps to L. with trailing draperies, holding before it in R. hand flask, in L. scarlet bud. The whole is

L. ; the back hollowed, giving a particularly graceful curve to side, and head slightly bent gazing down at lotus. Fig., dress, accessories, and style of work are of type *Ch. 002 ; fig. specially slim, setting of both eyes shown by a wide semicircular line (see Ch. 009); ' laughing ' wrinkles drawn from corner of nose to mouth ; mouth rather large and parted, showing teeth.

Colouring very bright ; paint, though used only in broad lines and bands along edges of folds as in most other paintings of this class, is applied very thickly, giving a marked roughness to surface and a hard tone to colouring as a whole. Predominant hue a strong blue, approaching turquoise but of a greener tint ; this is used for stole, rev. of which is green. Skirt faintly shaded with pink and outlined with crimson ; streamers green or solid crimson outlined with touches of brilliant yellow. White used for girdle, streamers of head-dress, eyeballs, and teeth is of peculiarly opaque ' whitewash ' quality, making harsh contrast with blue. Lips painted vivid crimson; eyebrows a copper-green line over black ; inside of ear, hand, and lower lines of feet, red. Flask of usual round-bodied, long-necked, and stoppered variety, but its body here is white with pink ornamentation, prob. intended to represent porcelain. Lotus underfoot white, with dark pink tips and edges. Canopy complete, a good example of ornate ' Chinese ' type, and surmounted by bell-hung valance with vandyked band. For inferior replica, see Ch. lv. 0045.

Painting 2' 4" X 6E", length of whole 5' 5 ". Pl. LXXVIII.

Ch. i.. 0014. Linen painting with Chin. inscr., representing Paradise of Amilâbha (?), in simplified form, with donors. Linen band across top and bottom, with suspension loops at top. A. sits on lotus with Bodhisattva on either side ; R. hand in vilarka-mudrâ, L. below it with red lotus bud (?) in palm ; flesh shaded with brown. Canopy on trees above ; altar in front with kneeling Bodhisattva on either side ; no lake. Accessories and general treatment as in silk Paradise paintings ; cf. especially Ch. xlvi. oo8. Donors as in *Ch. 00102, etc. Colouring red, olive-green, true green, yellow, light and dark grey. Lozenge border round whole of picture. For interpretation, see Petrucci, Appendix E, III. iv. (Complete) 2' 11" x 1' 8".

Ch. i. 0015. Painted linen banner; apparently never completed, as pointed top is painted but not cut out. No streamers. Clean condition.

Subject : Avalokilesvara (?), standing â L. with hands in adoration. For descr. of type, and list of similar banners,

see *Ch. i. 0016. Colouring red, pale yellow, and grey. 2' X 6".

*Ch. i. oo16. Painted linen banner with Chin. inscr., representing Avalokilesvara (Kuan-yin). Complete, with head-piece, side and bottom streamers, and weighting-board. As throughout linen banners, head-piece is cut in one with picture, and its sides finished with border of different-coloured linen. Border here of bright pink, streamers of brown, linen. Linen used for banners themselves is generally light buff or cream-colour.

In subject and workmanship also this example is typical of the largest class of linen banners (see below), the same fig. being repeated in all, with almost no variation in pose or treatment. In this and three other instances (Ch. 00136 ; xx. 0012, and lv. 0036), Bodhisattva is identified by inscr. as Kuan-yin ; in one (Ch. 0060) as Ksitigarbha; but type is quite unspecialized, and shows no Dhyâni-buddha, or other distinctive emblems.

Bva. stands on single lotus, sometimes facing spectator, but generally R. or L., with hands in adoration at breast. Fig. is of ` Indian ' type, with slender waist and broad hips ; pose stiff, and legs in most instances disproportionately long. Dress, coiffure, and jewels are of Indian' type descr. under *Ch. oo88 ; skirt conventionally painted in a series of V-shaped folds down each leg, or in straight stripes from top to bottom. Halo is circular, of variously coloured concentric rings. Hair is always black ; flesh shaded with light red; colouring otherwise chiefly harsh tones of red, olive-green, yellowish brown, slate, and yellow. Workmanship coarse.

For other examples see : Ch. oo6o, 00133-4, 00136-7, 00141; }. 0015; iii. 0015, 0017; xx. oolo, 0012; xxi. 009-10; xxiii. 002-4 ; liv. 009; lv. 0036-43 ; lv}. 0024 ; lxiv. 002 ; for other Bodhisattva banners, with hands in various poses and sometimes with dress in Chinese Buddhist' style of *Ch. 002, but in much the same grade of workmanship : Ch. 0061, oo135, oo139, 00140 ;iii. 0016, 0018 ; xxi. 00I I ; xxiii. 006-7 ; xxvii. 004 ; xxxviii. 007 ; *liv. oo8 ; lvi. 0022-3 ; lxiv. oox ; for Buddhas xx. oox I. a; lvi. 0021.

Ch. i. 0016 : A. stands a R. Colouring orange, greenish brown, crimson, slate.colour. Inscr. on cartouche in R. top

"

corner, with salutation to Kuan-yin. Painting 3' 2 x 7A", length of whole 7' 5". (Side without inscr.) Pl. LXXXIX.

Ch. i. 0017. Paper painting showing Six-armed Avalokilesvara (Kuan-yin) with two attendants. Stands facing spectator on lotuses upon top of flat rock (Mount Meru ?). Upper hands hold up discs of Sun and Moon ; middle hands in vilarka-mudrâ on either side of breast ; lower hands hang by sides, thumbs and forefingers joined, palms out. Moon's disc contains only tree. Avalok. has three heads, with large fig. of Dhyâni-buddha over middle one. His pose is stiff, his dress in ' Indian' Bodhisattva style with short straight over-skirt, as in *Ch. oo88. Behind him grow bamboos.

Attendants evidently represent the Good and the Evil Genius, from their resemblance to figs. in Ch. lvii. 004. Dressed in same way, carrying opened rolls of paper; but their hair is done

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