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Li Ping'er Crying over Guange on Seeing His Belongings
Li Ping'er Crying over Guange on Seeing His Belongings

Li Ping'er Crying over Guange on Seeing His Belongings

Album TitleIllustrations of Scenes from The Plum in the Golden Vase (Jin Ping Mei)
Original Language Title李瓶兒睹物哭官哥（金瓶梅插畫）
CultureChinese
Date18th century
MediumAlbum leaf; ink and color on silk
DimensionsImage: 15 1/2 x 12 1/2 inches (39.37 x 31.75 cm)
Sheet: 19 1/2 x 14 1/2 inches (49.53 x 36.83 cm)
Credit LinePurchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust through the George H. and Elizabeth O. Davis Fund
Object number2006.18.8
InscribedUpper right
On View
On view
Gallery Location
  • 222
Collections
DescriptionThe twelve album leaves were painted on silk in rich colors and meticulous details. Each bears a cartouche on the upper right of the mount. The inscription identifies each episode from the popular novel, the Jinpingmei (Gold Vase Plum). Eleven of the twelve leaves display figures in architectural settings, and one leaf is dominated by a river landscape.Exhibition History

Flowers to Frost: Four Seasons in East Asian Art, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, January, 5 – July 17, 2016.

Sages and Heroes: Storytelling in Asian Art, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, April 12, 2025–November 30, 2025, no cat.




Gallery Label
This painting illustrates an episode of the famous novel Plum in the Golden Vase. Li Ping’er’s young son, Guange, has suddenly died from an accident. Here, she cries when seeing his toy drum. The season is fall after the Moon Festival. In Chinese literature, autumn is often associated with lament, as the withering of nature reflects the decay of life. The fallen leaves from the maple trees remind us that life is fleeting.
Provenance

Andrew Franklin

Christie's, South Kensington, The Andrew Franklin Collection of Asian Art, Sale 4019, Lot 227;

With Nicholas Grindley by 2006;

Purchased from Nicholas Grindley by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2006

Published References

Qing gong zhen bao bai mei tu 清宮珍寶百美圖. [China]: 1850?-1950?

Christie's, South Kensington, The Andrew Franklin Collection of Asian Art, Sale 4019, Lot 227.    

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