Object Details
- Artist
- Lin Tinggui 林庭桂 (active late 12th century)
- Label
- Illustrating a scene from the daily life of Buddhist monks, this painting belongs to a set of one hundred hanging scrolls depicting the five hundred luohan, or Buddhist saints. The set of paintings was commissioned by a Buddhist abbot in 1175 and completed by Lin Tinggui and another painter three years later. The paintings were transported to Japan in the thirteenth century and eventually became the property of the Daitokuji, a Buddhist temple in Kyoto. In 1894 the Daitokuji, in need of funds for repairs, exhibited forty-four of the scrolls in Boston, where 10 of the paintings were sold. The Japanese presented this painting in gratitude to the tour's American organizer, who sold it in 1902 to Charles Lang Freer.
- Lin Tinggui painted the six figures with precise outlines and bright, opaque colors. The five luohan and their servant are shown washing their clothes and hanging them out to dry. Written in gold and almost completely invisible, a signed inscription by the artist appears in the lower right corner.
- To learn more about this and similar objects, visit http://www.asia.si.edu/SongYuan/default.asp Song and Yuan Dynasty Painting and Calligraphy.
- Provenance
- To 1894
- The Daitoku-ji Temple, Kyoto, to 1894 [1]
- From 1894 to 1902
- Ernest Francisco Fenollosa (1853-1908), Japan, Boston, New York, NY, and Spring Hill, AL, given by the Daitoku-ji while at Museum of Fine Art, Boston, in 1894 [2]
- From 1902 to 1919
- Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Ernest Francisco Fenollosa in 1902 [3]
- From 1920
- Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [4]
- Notes:
- [1] See Curatorial Remarks, Fu Shen and Stephen Allee, Excerpt Exhibition Label Text, May 1993. See also, Object Documentation, Song and Yuan Dynasty Painting and Calligraphy (http://www.asia.si.edu/SongYuan/). This object exhibits seals, colophons, or inscriptions that could provide additional information regarding the object’s history; see Curatorial Remarks in the object record for further details.
- [2] See note 1. In 1894 Ernest Francisco Fenollosa arranged a special exhibition in which forty-four Daitoku-ji paintings were shown at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. As an expression of gratitude for his help organizing the exhibition, the Daitoku-ji presented one of the forty-four paintings to Fenollossa, who subsequently sold it to Charles L. Freer in 1902.
- [3] See Original Kakemono and Makimono List, L. 281, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.
- [4] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.
- Collection
- Freer Gallery of Art Collection
- Exhibition History
- Setting the Bar: Arts of the Song dynasty (October 14, 2017 - ongoing)
- Masters of Mercy: Buddha's Amazing Disciples (March 10 to July 8, 2012)
- Enlightened Beings: Buddhism in Chinese Paintings (September 1, 2012 to February 24, 2013)
- Guardians of the Law: Chinese Luohan Painting (December 1, 2003 to May 23, 2004)
- Masterpieces of Chinese Painting (II) (May 9, 1993 to May 31, 1994)
- Masterpieces of Chinese Painting (I) (August 3, 1984 to February 7, 1985)
- Chinese Art (March 9, 1981 to March 12, 1982)
- Chinese Figure Painting (September 17, 1973 to January 3, 1975)
- Chinese Art (January 1, 1963 to March 6, 1981)
- Previous custodian or owner
- Daitoku-ji 大徳寺
- Ernest Francisco Fenollosa (1853-1908) (C.L. Freer source)
- Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
- Credit Line
- Gift of Charles Lang Freer
- 1178
- Period
- Southern Song dynasty
- Accession Number
- F1902.224
- Restrictions & Rights
- CC0
- Type
- Painting
- Medium
- Ink and color on silk
- Dimensions
- H x W (image): 112.3 x 53.5 cm (44 3/16 x 21 1/16 in)
- Origin
- China
- Related Online Resources
- Google Cultural Institute
- Song and Yuan Dynasty Painting and Calligraphy
- See more items in
- Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection
- Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
- Topic
- landscape
- Buddhism
- pine tree
- Southern Song dynasty (1127 - 1279)
- river
- Arhat
- washing
- China
- Mahayana Buddhism
- Chinese Art
- Charles Lang Freer collection
- Record ID
- fsg_F1902.224
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye35d025ac8-64ef-4adf-aa89-a75313fd5629
