QIAN SHUN JU (attributed to, 1239 — 1299)

Portraits of Periodical Offerings

China, 18th century or earlier

A handscroll containing two sections of painting in ink and colour on silk, each sealed, depicting foreign emissaries parading gifts of jade, coral and beautifully caparisonned horses, a title slip reading Yuan, Qianshun Ju, Zhígòngtú, and a section of calligraphy on paper with a title reading Zhígòngtú, dated December 11th 1385, stamped with five seals and signed with the name of Zhang Shen, a collector, scholar and calligrapher active at the turn of Yuan and Ming dynasties, explaining he appraised a Zhígòngtú and provided it with an introduction.

31.5cm x 53cm; 35.5cm x 56cm; 35.5cm x 56cm

Provenance: an English private collection, acquired in the 1990s.

A very closely related painting dated to the Ming Dynasty is housed in the collection of the Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art, Washington DC, accession no F1915.16. The Smythsonian scroll is traditionally attributed to Han Gan (715 — 781), the Tang Dynasty painter renowned for his vivid and spirited depiction of horses from the Imperial stables.

Throughout the history of the Chinese empire, the vassal states and tribes were obliged to deliver diplomatic gifts to the court on regular basis. Portraits of Periodical Offerings, Zhígòngtú, (職貢圖 / 职贡图) was a popular theme and a way of recording those foreign tributes arriving at the court and ambassadors delivering them. Each depiction was accompanied by a short description of the diplomat and their country of origin. Examples were commissioned since the Liang Dynasty (526 - 539) and copies made for circulation among the court officials.

Horses played a crucial role in these tributary ceremonies as an important commodity and a symbol of status. In Tang dynasty they were imported from great distances as gifts to the Chinese emperors: there was a belief that the steeds form the Sogdian valeys in Central Asia (area roughly covering today's Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan) have descended form dragons and have been called Tianma - Heavenly Horses. Some were said to sweat blood, a condition most likely due to a parasitic infection. Both horses and their foreign grooms were in high demand at the subsequent Chinese courts.

《元钱舜举职贡图》18世纪或更早

这幅画卷包含两部分，画布为丝绸，设色，分别有印章，画卷描绘外国使者向朝廷进贡玉器、珊瑚和装饰华丽的马匹。其中一部分为书法，带有简短的题词“洪武乙丑冬至前二日获观钱玉谭职贡图因书其首 ”和五个印章，题签上书有“职贡图”。

来源：来自英国私人收藏，购于1990年代。