The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 15, 2024

Road to Shu

Road to Shu

1743
(Chinese, active mid-1700s)
China, Qing dynasty (1644–1911), Qianlong reign (1736–95)
Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk
Painting only: 187 x 256.5 cm (73 5/8 x 101 in.); Overall with knobs: 270 x 284 cm (106 5/16 x 111 13/16 in.)
John L. Severance Fund 2019.167
Location: not on view

Description

Few works by the Yuan workshops in Yangzhou present a continuous composition of such monumental scale as this hanging scroll. Road to Shu (in Sichuan province) depicts the trade of goods over long distances and through mountainous terrain. Busy travelers lead mules over footbridges, mountain paths wind along steep slopes, and soaring bridges connect peaks divided by deep gorges.

The Yuan studios produced paintings to decorate the residences of wealthy Yangzhou salt merchants and princely palaces. The title Road to Shu refers to the historical drama of the flight of Tang emperor Xuanzong (reigned 712–56) to Sichuan in the aftermath of the An Lushan Rebellion (755–63). At the same time, the scenery alludes to Anhui, the mountainous native country of many of the salt merchants and their trade routes in northern parts of the empire.
  • May 31, 2007
    (Poly Art Auctions, Beijing, China, 31 May 2007 sale)
    December 5, 2010
    (Beijing Council International Auction Co., Ltd., "Classical Chinese Paintings," 5 December 2010, lot 0998, sold to the Moss Gallery)
    2010-2019
    (Sydney L. Moss, Ltd., London, UK, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    March 20, 2014
    (Offered at Sotheby’s New York, Fine Classical Chinese Painting & Calligraphy, 20 March 2014, lot 565. Unsold.)
    2019-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Sotheby's New York. Fine classical Chinese paintings & calligraphy. 20 March 2014. Reproduced: Lot 565
    Von Spee, Clarissa. “Acquisitions 2019.” Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine 60, no. 2 (March/April 2020): 8-11. Reproduced: P. 8–9; Mentioned: P. 10, 11.
    Griswold, William M. “Recent Acquisitions (2013-20) at the Cleveland Museum of Art.” Burlington Magazine 163, no. 1414 (January 2021): 93-104. Mentioned and reproduced: pp. 102-103, no. 20; mentioned: p. 93
  • When Salt was Gold: Yangzhou, City of Riches and Art (Chinese art rotation). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 12-November 5, 2023).
  • {{cite web|title=Road to Shu|url=false|author=Yuan Yao|year=1743|access-date=15 May 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2019.167