The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of October 10, 2026

A hanging scroll depicts Magu, a woman with light skin tone and hair pinned up, wearing a vibrant red robe over intricate patterned layers. She holds a footed cup on a platter while a child behind her holds a tall lotus stem with a large leaf and blue flower. Stylized, perforated gray rock formations rise in the background. Calligraphy and a red seal occupy the upper left of the silk.

Magu Offering Longevity

1937

Zhu Meicun

(Chinese, 1911–1993)
China, Republican era (1912–49)
Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk
101.6 x 50.8 cm (40 x 20 in.); Overall with knobs: 185.4 x 67.3 cm (73 x 26 1/2 in.)
Gift of Dr. Matthew Edlund 2025.205
Location: 240A Chinese Paintings and Calligraphy

Did You Know?

Zhu Meicun was inspired by a painting owned by Wu Hufan (1894–1968), a collector, scholar, and artist based in Shanghai.

Description

Dressed in red, Magu (literally the “hemp maiden”), a Daoist goddess associated with immortality, holds a jade vessel with the elixir for longevity. On her right stands an attendant with a lotus flower, behind her a rock. The title script and painting are rendered in an archaic (ancient) style, emphasized by shoes with upturned tips and a jade pendant. Zhu Meicun had copied the painting from an original by Ren Xiong (任熊) (Chinese, 1823–1857) which Wu Hufan owned at the time.
  • ?–2025
    Dr. Matthew Edlund, Sarasota, FL, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    2025–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • The Plum Scenery Studio: Wu Hufan and His Circle in Modern Shanghai. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 31-November 8, 2026).
  • {{cite web|title=Magu Offering Longevity|url=false|author=Zhu Meicun|year=1937|access-date=10 October 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2025.205