This painted chamber, built in the early 1600s, was once the main reception hall in a palatial compound in the Chinese capital city of Beijing. Wang Cheng-en, a eunuch in the service of the last Ming dynasty ruler, built the compound, and it later came to be known by the name of a subsequent owner, Duke Zhao.
The palatial residence, like a traditional family compound, was built on a rectangular plan, facing south, and surrounded by a wall. The reception hall, the most formal of the many buildings, would have been located on the central axis, not far from the south gate. Here, Wang Cheng-en would have received guests and petitioners. The white plaster and brick walls and tile floor are modern replacements, but the rest is original, from the marble bases of the great lacquered wooden columns to the peak of the roof.
As in all East Asian buildings, in contrast to Western architecture, the structure of the roof is greatly emphasized. All of the supporting members of the immensely heavy tile roof have been left exposed, and are accentuated by surface decoration. Although some of the brilliantly painted decoration has been lost, the effect is still one of dignified beauty. The hall is furnished with lacquer storage chests, a dog cage, porcelains, jades, and imperial jewelry. The Crozier Collection of rock crystal, formerly part of the Chinese Imperial Collection, is also displayed here in cases.
The Zhihua monastery is one of the great Buddhist temple compounds in the Chinese capital of Beijing. Conceived on a grand scale, the compound was built in the early 1400s by the eunuch Wang Zhen. This ceiling comes from the second of five main halls on the monastery's central axis—the Hall of Great Wisdom.
To give visitors a sense of the original context, the Museum installed the ceiling with architectural elements reconstructed from measured drawings made at the original site. In the center is a writhing imperial dragon surrounded by clouds, bracketing, and eight canted panels, each bearing a smaller dragon among clouds. Lotuses, apsaras (Buddhist flying musicians), and other Buddhist religious symbols are carved in the surrounding panels. The Chinese name for this central part of the ceiling is tianjing, or "well of heaven." While most of the original red lacquer is well preserved, much of the rich overlay of gold leaf has been lost.
A series of model temples supported by cloud-decorated brackets encompass the central element; within these miniature structures are delicately carved sculptures of Buddhas and bodhisattvas. The remainder of the ceiling consists of square panels painted with stylized lotus flowers that show the influence of Tibetan Buddhism (Lamaism). Each bears a character from a North Indian script (called Lantsha by the Tibetans) that symbolically recreates the universe. The model temples and panels may have been added during repairs made in the Kangxi period (1662–1722).
Learn more about the ceiling in this symposium presentation from Hiromi Kinoshita, Hannah L. and J. Welles Henderson Curator of Chinese Art.
The scholar's study was one of the innermost chambers of a Chinese scholar-bureaucrat's residence. This example was acquired by the Museum in Beijing, where similar interiors may still be seen in the palaces of the former Forbidden City. Designed to be a contemplative setting away from official duties, the two side walls are lined with hinged, lacquered panels, each with silk-covered latticework at the top and delicately painted landscapes at the bottom.
The study is furnished in a style typical of the period. The hardwood (huanghuali) seen at the back left is of the "kneehole" type, long popular in China. It offered ample room for storing the scholar's books, brushes, and writing equipment. The long, narrow table at the right front was designed for painting or looking at scrolls.
The occupant of the study was most likely a highly ranked mandarin, or civil official, who had passed a series of difficult competitive examinations in the Chinese classics in order to attain his position. He was versed not only in the duties of his office but also in music, poetry, and the arts of calligraphy and painting, and was a connoisseur of art with a keen interest in collecting.
The room's furnishings, acquired separately from the panels, illustrate the cultivated learning of the scholar-official and complete the peaceful setting.
