The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of December 13, 2025
Liu Haichan
1300s
(1271-1368)
Image: 105 x 38 cm (41 5/16 x 14 15/16 in.); Overall with knobs: 182.8 x 59.1 cm (71 15/16 x 23 1/4 in.)
Edward L. Whittemore Fund 1982.29.2
Location: Not on view
Did You Know?
Because the immortal Liu Haichan is usually depicted with bangs, his eponym, liúhǎi 劉海, means "bangs" in Chinese.Description
Liu Haichan is a Daoist immortal sometimes included in the Eight Immortals. He is often shown as a young man wearing bangs across his forehead. He was said to have lived during the Five Dynasties period (907–979) and left his position as a grand councilor to become a hermit. Usually depicted carrying a string of coins and accompanied by a three-legged toad, Liu Haichan became a god of wealth and his toad symbolizes wealth as well. In this scroll, Liu is teasing the three-legged toad with a string of coins tied to his waist- ?–1982(Katsuhiro Kobayashi, Tokyo, Japan, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)1982–The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Lee, Sherman E. “Year in Review for 1982.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 70, no. 1 (January 1983): 3–55. Mentioned: no. 114, p. 54 www.jstor.orgDelacour, Catherine. La Voie du Tao: un Autre Chemin de L'être : Galeries Nationales, Grand Palais, 29 Mars-5 Juillet 2010. Paris: Reunion des Musees Nationaux, 2010. Mentioned: pp. 280 and 282; Reproduced: pp. 281 and 283, cat. no. 72.1 and 72.2
- Escaping to a Better World: Eccentrics and Immortals in Chinese Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 13-November 6, 2022).La voie du Tao, un autre chemin de l'Etre. Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais, 75008 Paris, France (March 29-July 5, 2010).The Year in Review for 1982. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 5-February 6, 1983).
- {{cite web|title=Liu Haichan|url=false|author=|year=1300s|access-date=13 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1982.29.2