Listening to the Qin

聽琴圖

late 1400s–early 1500s

attributed to Tang Yin 唐寅

(Chinese, 1470–1523)

Culture

China, Ming dynasty (1368–1644)

Medium

hanging scroll; ink and light color on silk

Measurements

Overall with knobs: 118 x 45 cm (46 7/16 x 17 11/16 in.); Painting: 35.8 x 29.1 cm (14 1/8 x 11 7/16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Herbert F. Leisy in memory of his wife, Helen Stamp Leisy 1977.199

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Location

Not on view

Did You Know?

The painting is mounted in a Japanese-style three-tier format with futai.

Description

The painting alludes to a legendary incident from the life of Ji Kang 嵇康 (AD 223–262), a guqin player who belonged to a group of 3rd-century eccentric intellectuals. Ji Kang is known as the author of a Guangling San (廣陵散; Melody from Guangling), a composition for the guqin so haunting that it aroused spirits to visit him. The painting depicts the moment when one of the spirits––disguised as a human––is helped by another to emerge from the ground, while others are drawn to the musician playing in his cottage under the full moon.