Crowned and bejeweled, as befitting his status as one of India’s most beloved gods, Ganesha is represented grasping objects frequently associated with him: a battle-ax, a lotus (now broken), a bowl of favorite sweets, and a broken tusk. Ganesha’s elephant head, like his multiple arms, is a mark of his divine nature, and various myths explain how he acquired it. The most popular recounts how the goddess Parvati desired a child and single-handedly created Ganesha. Her husband, the god Shiva, mistakenly beheaded Ganesha but restored him to life by replacing his human head with that of an elephant. Elephants carry complex symbolism in the Indian cultural world. Because they are thought to resemble rain clouds in color and shape, they have long been associated with fertility and prosperity.

According to his inscription, Wang Yuanqi created this painting for his mentor in the style of the Yuan master Huang Gongwang (1269–1354). The technical skill with which the painting was created suggests that Wang was well trained in the use of ink and color. His applications of blue, green, and brown washes over the ink were influenced by the longstanding “blue-and-green landscape” tradition.

Inscription by Wang Yuanqi: Pines and clouds on spring peaks. Modeled after Huang Dachi [Huang Gongwang] when serving in Chuangchun Garden, in spring of the year gengxu [1708], during the reign of the Kangxi emperor. For old master Meiweng. Please correct my brushwork, Wang Yuanqi.

Inscription by Jiaoqing: Jiaoqing expresses his sincere appreciation for the ingenious skill with which Wang Yuanqi modeled this landscape in the style of Huang Gongwang. He [Jiaoqing] praises Wang’s exceptional brushwork and his own great pleasure and pride on acquiring the painting in the third year of the reign of Xuantong [1911].

Wu Bin was born in Fujian province and probably had his early training in the style practiced by local professional painters. Some time between 1591 and 1600 he moved to Nanjing, where his talent was noted by members of the imperial court. There he had access to ancient paintings in the imperial collection. Perhaps in part due to this exposure, Wu was a leader in a movement to revive the traditional styles of the Song dynasty (960–1279). Although he was accomplished in a range of styles and types of painting, he is now best known for monumental landscapes with exaggerated compositions and forms, characteristics of a painting tradition associated with the Northern Song dynasty (960–1126). This very large hanging scroll, no doubt created for one of the palatial-sized buildings common in Nanjing, is a creative reworking of the late Ming revival of the monumental landscape painting, with its emphasis is on vertical rock forms. In Wu Bin’s version, the tall crag resembles an organism growing in defiance of the earthly law of gravity.

Exotic equestrian sports captured the interest of Japanese warriors in the late 1500s, a time of heightened curiosity about foreigners and their customs. In this screen, the riders are Tatars (also known as Tartars), nomadic tribesman who lived north and west of China.

A lively polo game occupies the center of the right screen (shown here), where mounted Tatars compete between decorated goal posts. In the left screen (B69D18.b), excited hunters converge upon prey ranging from humble goats to exotic leopards. Gold clouds separate spectators, including aristocratic-looking figures in tented enclosures, from the main action. Observing the action from a vantage point in the mountains above the hunt is a figure that may be the Tatar ruler (top left corner of the left screen B69D18.b).

The distinctive features and costumes of the Tatars appear to be based on Chinese models that include Ming dynasty Chinese paintings of the theme “Lady Wenji’s Return to China” (Wenji Guihan). The Kano painter’s achievement was to combine these borrowed elements in lively action scenes unfolding within a panoramic landscape.

At various times in various Buddhist lands, attempts were made to represent the idea that a supreme buddha encompasses the entire cosmos. This image is one such attempt. On the panel of the Buddha’s robe is depicted a hell. The king of hell sits at a table, judging sinners’ misdeeds, while below him sinners are flung into a boiling pot and poked by a fiendish hell guard. Between the Buddha’s legs and arms, the human world is represented. At the level of the knees the young Buddha-to-be is shown twice, riding out from his father’s palace for two of the fateful “four great encounters.” In these he sees, for the first time, an old man, a sick man, a dead man, and a monk, and resolves to begin a career of spiritual endeavor. Above these scenes, is shown the end of the Buddha’s earthly career. The young prince has achieved buddhahood and spent decades teaching the insights he has gained. Now he has died, and his disciples surround his deathbed to mourn his passing. At the elbows of the Buddha is depicted a famous scene of religious discussion between the bodhisattva of wisdom, Manjushri, and the learned layman Vimalakirti.

Mount Meru, a mythic serpent entwined in its lower reaches, rises from the Buddha’s abdomen to his chest. On its triangular upper part are carved some of the buildings of the gods’ city. Further heavens rise higher still on little clouds on the Buddha’s upper arms and shoulders. In the Buddha’s halo, and again on the petals of his lotus throne, additional Buddhas appear. These small images symbolize how the cosmic Buddha projects other Buddhas into all other worlds.

This ritual trident would have had a long handle attached. The goddess Durga, of whom Kali is an aspect, wielded a trident when she conquered unrighteous enemies. This weapon, like the gods’ other weapons, was seen as capable of liberating the human soul from bondage to the things of this world and would have been worshiped for this power. The goddess standing in front of the middle prong of the trident has the symbolic implements and flame-like hair standing on end of the horrific goddess Kali. Here, however, she does not show her most terrifying side, but appears in the gracious aspect known as Auspicious Kali.

The Arabic inscriptions on either side of these Chinese incense burners indicate that they were made for the Muslim market. They could have been made for export or for foreign Muslims living in China, but just as likely they were made for Chinese Muslims. Paired incense burners often flanked the entrance of traditional Chinese temples. Their shape was adapted for use in mosques all over China. On one side is an inscription in Arabic giving the Shahadah, the Islamic declaration of faith, reading “There is no god but the One God and Muhammad is the Messenger of God.” The inscription on the reverse is a quotation from the Koran, “The best discourse is remembrance of God and accounts of His Messenger.” The incense burners are covered with little splashes of gold. This was achieved by fire gilding, a process by which gold is applied in the form of an amalgam with mercury. The vessel is then heated until the mercury
evaporates and leaves the gold behind.

The rarity of this piece, worked from a single large piece of rock crystal, is enriched by its strikingly bold artistry. The buffalo rests on its four folded legs, its head lowered so that its two horns point upward. The highest point of the body is the shoulder hump, which is accented by several deep wrinkles on the neck. The hump slopes gracefully down to the round hindquarters. In contrast to the smoothly curved upper body, the lower section of the buffalo is all edges and corners. The animal’s feet are tensed to support the body and keep it balanced as the head sinks down toward the front foot, suggesting that the beast is just about to stand up. The eyes project from the contour of the head in carefully worked bosses.

Crystal was used to make tools and personal ornaments as early as the Neolithic period. In the fifth century, knowledge of working crystal was so developed that this material could be used to make a magnifying glass. Ancient crystal mines were recorded in Shangxi, Shangdong, and Xinjiang. In modern times, crystal has also come from many other regions. Crystal artifacts began to be collected by the Qing dynasty court; the Qing rulers, members of the Manchu minority, especially favored crystal ornaments because a Manchu belief holds that crystals prevent hunters from being attacked by devils when hunting in the mountains of their northeastern homeland.

Dongfang Shuo (160 BCE) was a courtier at Han Wudi’s (140–87 BCE) court who delighted the emperor with his wit. He became an Immortal by eating the peaches he had stolen from the orchard of the Queen Mother of the West. Legend has it that Dongfang Shuo stole these peaches of immortality three times. The peaches flowered every 3,000 years, and took another 3,000 years to ripen. As a result, he lived 18,000 years.

Traditionally, Dongfang Shuo is depicted as a running figure with windswept robes, dashing away with a branch of peaches. In this carving of greenish hetian nephrite, he is shown as a bearded old man wearing a blissful look on his face, clad in flowing robes and a cloth cap. His left leg is lifted, as if he is running; behind his back he carries a leafy branch with two peaches. The four-character Qianlong reign mark is incised on the sole of his left foot.

Mythical animals, such as the ones depicted here among auspicious flowers, are believed to bring peace and blessings. In traditional Chinese culture, the legendary phoenix is the emperor of all birds. Its five-colored tail is named for the Five Cardinal Virtues: benevolence, righteousness, propriety, knowledge, and sincerity. The phoenix augurs the emergence of an able ruler or the birth of a great man, for it appeared when Confucius was born. The bird is also the primary motif for the Empress of China, ornamenting her crown as well as her clothing.