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Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
- Title Translation: å„å åÆŗ
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This ideaāof the power of one supreme deity over all the othersāresonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
- Title Translation: å„å åÆŗ
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This ideaāof the power of one supreme deity over all the othersāresonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
Six Steeds of Zhao Mausoleum ("Zhaoling Liujun")
- Title Translation: ęéµå éŖ
- Period: Tang, 636 C.E.
- Project: Six Horses of Tang Taizong
- Work Description: The Six Horses reliefs were engraved in the 10th year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty (636 AD). In order to commemorate the six war horses he rode in the founding war of the emperial China, King Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty ordered the painter Yan Liben to draw the figures of the six horses, and then the engraver Yan Lide copied and carved them on the stone. The great calligrapher Ouyang Xun of the time made the Tang The hymn book written by Taizong himself is on the upper corner of the original stone. After they were carved, they were placed in the altar at the northern foot of Zhaoling. In order, they are "Teqinqiao", "Qingzhui", "Shivachi", "Saluzi", "Quanmaojun" and "Baitiwu". Among them, two horses, "Sa Lu Zi" and "Fist Mao Jun", were dispersed overseas in 1914 and are now in the Museum of Archeology and Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Museum) in the United States. Each piece of Zhaoling Six Horses is 2.5 meters high and 3 meters wide. The six horses are vividly reproduced on the stone slab in the form of high relief. Three of them are standing and three are galloping. They have handsome postures, valiant charm, vivid shapes, and expressive eyebrows. It can be said that "the king of Qin conquered the world with his cavalry, and the six horses were outstanding in painting but also worried." Mr. Lu Xun praised Six Horses as an "unprecedented" masterpiece.
Six Steeds of Zhao Mausoleum ("Zhaoling Liujun"), stone relief
- Title Translation: ęéµå éŖ , ęµ®éē³
- Period: Tang, 636 C.E.
- Project: Six Horses of Tang Taizong
- Work Description: The Six Horses reliefs were engraved in the 10th year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty (636 AD). In order to commemorate the six war horses he rode in the founding war of the emperial China, King Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty ordered the painter Yan Liben to draw the figures of the six horses, and then the engraver Yan Lide copied and carved them on the stone. The great calligrapher Ouyang Xun of the time made the Tang The hymn book written by Taizong himself is on the upper corner of the original stone. After they were carved, they were placed in the altar at the northern foot of Zhaoling. In order, they are "Teqinqiao", "Qingzhui", "Shivachi", "Saluzi", "Quanmaojun" and "Baitiwu". Among them, two horses, "Sa Lu Zi" and "Fist Mao Jun", were dispersed overseas in 1914 and are now in the Museum of Archeology and Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Museum) in the United States. Each piece of Zhaoling Six Horses is 2.5 meters high and 3 meters wide. The six horses are vividly reproduced on the stone slab in the form of high relief. Three of them are standing and three are galloping. They have handsome postures, valiant charm, vivid shapes, and expressive eyebrows. It can be said that "the king of Qin conquered the world with his cavalry, and the six horses were outstanding in painting but also worried." Mr. Lu Xun praised Six Horses as an "unprecedented" masterpiece.
Six Steeds of Zhao Mausoleum ("Zhaoling Liujun"), digital reconstruction
- Title Translation: ęéµå éŖ , ę°åéå»ŗ
- Period: Tang, 636 C.E.
- Project: Six Horses of Tang Taizong
- Work Description: The Six Horses reliefs were engraved in the 10th year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty (636 AD). In order to commemorate the six war horses he rode in the founding war of the emperial China, King Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty ordered the painter Yan Liben to draw the figures of the six horses, and then the engraver Yan Lide copied and carved them on the stone. The great calligrapher Ouyang Xun of the time made the Tang The hymn book written by Taizong himself is on the upper corner of the original stone. After they were carved, they were placed in the altar at the northern foot of Zhaoling. In order, they are "Teqinqiao", "Qingzhui", "Shivachi", "Saluzi", "Quanmaojun" and "Baitiwu". Among them, two horses, "Sa Lu Zi" and "Fist Mao Jun", were dispersed overseas in 1914 and are now in the Museum of Archeology and Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Museum) in the United States. Each piece of Zhaoling Six Horses is 2.5 meters high and 3 meters wide. The six horses are vividly reproduced on the stone slab in the form of high relief. Three of them are standing and three are galloping. They have handsome postures, valiant charm, vivid shapes, and expressive eyebrows. It can be said that "the king of Qin conquered the world with his cavalry, and the six horses were outstanding in painting but also worried." Mr. Lu Xun praised Six Horses as an "unprecedented" masterpiece.
Guardian Lion
- Title Translation: å®ę¤ē®
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: Provenance: Wanfo (Ten Thousand Buddha) Cave, Longmen Caves, Luoyang, China [see note 1]; about 1930, removed from Wanfo Cave by local stonemasons, including Wang Kui and sold, probably by Ma Longtu (antiques dealer), Luoyang, to a Beijing dealer [see note 2]. By 1931, C. T. Loo and Co., New York [see note 3]; 1940, sold by Loo to the MFA. (Accession Date: March 7, 1940) NOTES: [1] Photographed in situ in 1907 or 1908 and published by Edouard Chavannes, Mission Archeologique dans la Chine Septentrionale (Paris, 1909), no. 305, pl. CLXXXII. The companion lion is in the collection of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. [2] According to Gong Dazhong, Longmen Shiku Yishu (The Art of Longmen Caves) (Beijing: Renmin Meishu Chubanshe, 2002), pp. 58-60. [3] Dealer C. T. Loo lent the lion to the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University from December 2, 1931 until September 1935.
Six Steeds of Zhao Mausoleum ("Zhaoling Liujun"), emperor statue
- Title Translation: ęéµå éŖ , ēåøéå
- Period: Tang, 636 C.E.
- Project: Six Horses of Tang Taizong
- Work Description: The Six Horses reliefs were engraved in the 10th year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty (636 AD). In order to commemorate the six war horses he rode in the founding war of the emperial China, King Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty ordered the painter Yan Liben to draw the figures of the six horses, and then the engraver Yan Lide copied and carved them on the stone. The great calligrapher Ouyang Xun of the time made the Tang The hymn book written by Taizong himself is on the upper corner of the original stone. After they were carved, they were placed in the altar at the northern foot of Zhaoling. In order, they are "Teqinqiao", "Qingzhui", "Shivachi", "Saluzi", "Quanmaojun" and "Baitiwu". Among them, two horses, "Sa Lu Zi" and "Fist Mao Jun", were dispersed overseas in 1914 and are now in the Museum of Archeology and Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Museum) in the United States. Each piece of Zhaoling Six Horses is 2.5 meters high and 3 meters wide. The six horses are vividly reproduced on the stone slab in the form of high relief. Three of them are standing and three are galloping. They have handsome postures, valiant charm, vivid shapes, and expressive eyebrows. It can be said that "the king of Qin conquered the world with his cavalry, and the six horses were outstanding in painting but also worried." Mr. Lu Xun praised Six Horses as an "unprecedented" masterpiece.
Buddha with Two Attendants in a Niche
- Title Translation: å¦ę„äøå°ä½é¾
- Period: Tang, 703 C.E.
- Project: Guangzhai Temple Qibaotai Pagoda
Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi), VaiÅravana and VajrapÄį¹i
- Title Translation: å„å åÆŗ , ęÆę²éØäøéåęč©čØ
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This ideaāof the power of one supreme deity over all the othersāresonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
Standing Eleven-headed Kannon (EkÄdaÅamukha AvalokiteÅvara)
- Title Translation: åäøé¢č§é³ (ä¾å”č¾¾čØē©å)
- Period: Tang, 703 C.E.
- Project: Guangzhai Temple Qibaotai Pagoda
- Work Description: This image is one of the seven statues of Eleven-Headed Guanyin (JÅ«ichimen Kannon) from the statue group in Baoqinsi Temple in Chinaās present-day Xiāan, Shaanxi Province. The right hand holds a seal with the words āExtinguish Sin.ā This attribute reflects belief in AvalokiteÅvaraās capacities at expiating bad karma.
Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi), VaiÅravana and VajrapÄį¹i
- Title Translation: å„å åÆŗ , ęÆę²éØäøéåęč©čØ
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This ideaāof the power of one supreme deity over all the othersāresonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
- Title Translation: å„å åÆŗ
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This ideaāof the power of one supreme deity over all the othersāresonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
- Title Translation: å„å åÆŗ
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This ideaāof the power of one supreme deity over all the othersāresonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
- Title Translation: å„å åÆŗ
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This ideaāof the power of one supreme deity over all the othersāresonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
- Title Translation: å„å åÆŗ
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This ideaāof the power of one supreme deity over all the othersāresonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
- Title Translation: å„å åÆŗ
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This ideaāof the power of one supreme deity over all the othersāresonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
Six Steeds of Zhao Mausoleum ("Zhaoling Liujun"), stone relief
- Title Translation: ęéµå éŖ , ęµ®éē³
- Period: Tang, 636 C.E.
- Project: Six Horses of Tang Taizong
- Work Description: The Six Horses reliefs were engraved in the 10th year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty (636 AD). In order to commemorate the six war horses he rode in the founding war of the emperial China, King Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty ordered the painter Yan Liben to draw the figures of the six horses, and then the engraver Yan Lide copied and carved them on the stone. The great calligrapher Ouyang Xun of the time made the Tang The hymn book written by Taizong himself is on the upper corner of the original stone. After they were carved, they were placed in the altar at the northern foot of Zhaoling. In order, they are "Teqinqiao", "Qingzhui", "Shivachi", "Saluzi", "Quanmaojun" and "Baitiwu". Among them, two horses, "Sa Lu Zi" and "Fist Mao Jun", were dispersed overseas in 1914 and are now in the Museum of Archeology and Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Museum) in the United States. Each piece of Zhaoling Six Horses is 2.5 meters high and 3 meters wide. The six horses are vividly reproduced on the stone slab in the form of high relief. Three of them are standing and three are galloping. They have handsome postures, valiant charm, vivid shapes, and expressive eyebrows. It can be said that "the king of Qin conquered the world with his cavalry, and the six horses were outstanding in painting but also worried." Mr. Lu Xun praised Six Horses as an "unprecedented" masterpiece.
Six Steeds of Zhao Mausoleum ("Zhaoling Liujun"), engraved sign
- Title Translation: ęéµå éŖ , å»ē
- Period: Tang, 636 C.E.
- Project: Six Horses of Tang Taizong
- Work Description: The Six Horses reliefs were engraved in the 10th year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty (636 AD). In order to commemorate the six war horses he rode in the founding war of the emperial China, King Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty ordered the painter Yan Liben to draw the figures of the six horses, and then the engraver Yan Lide copied and carved them on the stone. The great calligrapher Ouyang Xun of the time made the Tang The hymn book written by Taizong himself is on the upper corner of the original stone. After they were carved, they were placed in the altar at the northern foot of Zhaoling. In order, they are "Teqinqiao", "Qingzhui", "Shivachi", "Saluzi", "Quanmaojun" and "Baitiwu". Among them, two horses, "Sa Lu Zi" and "Fist Mao Jun", were dispersed overseas in 1914 and are now in the Museum of Archeology and Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Museum) in the United States. Each piece of Zhaoling Six Horses is 2.5 meters high and 3 meters wide. The six horses are vividly reproduced on the stone slab in the form of high relief. Three of them are standing and three are galloping. They have handsome postures, valiant charm, vivid shapes, and expressive eyebrows. It can be said that "the king of Qin conquered the world with his cavalry, and the six horses were outstanding in painting but also worried." Mr. Lu Xun praised Six Horses as an "unprecedented" masterpiece.
Six Steeds of Zhao Mausoleum ("Zhaoling Liujun"), digital reconstruction
- Title Translation: ęéµå éŖ , ę°åéå»ŗ
- Period: Tang, 636 C.E.
- Project: Six Horses of Tang Taizong
- Work Description: The Six Horses reliefs were engraved in the 10th year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty (636 AD). In order to commemorate the six war horses he rode in the founding war of the emperial China, King Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty ordered the painter Yan Liben to draw the figures of the six horses, and then the engraver Yan Lide copied and carved them on the stone. The great calligrapher Ouyang Xun of the time made the Tang The hymn book written by Taizong himself is on the upper corner of the original stone. After they were carved, they were placed in the altar at the northern foot of Zhaoling. In order, they are "Teqinqiao", "Qingzhui", "Shivachi", "Saluzi", "Quanmaojun" and "Baitiwu". Among them, two horses, "Sa Lu Zi" and "Fist Mao Jun", were dispersed overseas in 1914 and are now in the Museum of Archeology and Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Museum) in the United States. Each piece of Zhaoling Six Horses is 2.5 meters high and 3 meters wide. The six horses are vividly reproduced on the stone slab in the form of high relief. Three of them are standing and three are galloping. They have handsome postures, valiant charm, vivid shapes, and expressive eyebrows. It can be said that "the king of Qin conquered the world with his cavalry, and the six horses were outstanding in painting but also worried." Mr. Lu Xun praised Six Horses as an "unprecedented" masterpiece.
Six Steeds of Zhao Mausoleum ("Zhaoling Liujun"), stone relief
- Title Translation: ęéµå éŖ , ęµ®éē³
- Period: Tang, 636 C.E.
- Project: Six Horses of Tang Taizong
- Work Description: The Six Horses reliefs were engraved in the 10th year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty (636 AD). In order to commemorate the six war horses he rode in the founding war of the emperial China, King Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty ordered the painter Yan Liben to draw the figures of the six horses, and then the engraver Yan Lide copied and carved them on the stone. The great calligrapher Ouyang Xun of the time made the Tang The hymn book written by Taizong himself is on the upper corner of the original stone. After they were carved, they were placed in the altar at the northern foot of Zhaoling. In order, they are "Teqinqiao", "Qingzhui", "Shivachi", "Saluzi", "Quanmaojun" and "Baitiwu". Among them, two horses, "Sa Lu Zi" and "Fist Mao Jun", were dispersed overseas in 1914 and are now in the Museum of Archeology and Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Museum) in the United States. Each piece of Zhaoling Six Horses is 2.5 meters high and 3 meters wide. The six horses are vividly reproduced on the stone slab in the form of high relief. Three of them are standing and three are galloping. They have handsome postures, valiant charm, vivid shapes, and expressive eyebrows. It can be said that "the king of Qin conquered the world with his cavalry, and the six horses were outstanding in painting but also worried." Mr. Lu Xun praised Six Horses as an "unprecedented" masterpiece.
Six Steeds of Zhao Mausoleum ("Zhaoling Liujun"), surroundings
- Title Translation: ęéµå éŖ , åØå“ēÆå¢
- Period: Tang, 636 C.E.
- Project: Six Horses of Tang Taizong
- Work Description: The Six Horses reliefs were engraved in the 10th year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty (636 AD). In order to commemorate the six war horses he rode in the founding war of the emperial China, King Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty ordered the painter Yan Liben to draw the figures of the six horses, and then the engraver Yan Lide copied and carved them on the stone. The great calligrapher Ouyang Xun of the time made the Tang The hymn book written by Taizong himself is on the upper corner of the original stone. After they were carved, they were placed in the altar at the northern foot of Zhaoling. In order, they are "Teqinqiao", "Qingzhui", "Shivachi", "Saluzi", "Quanmaojun" and "Baitiwu". Among them, two horses, "Sa Lu Zi" and "Fist Mao Jun", were dispersed overseas in 1914 and are now in the Museum of Archeology and Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn Museum) in the United States. Each piece of Zhaoling Six Horses is 2.5 meters high and 3 meters wide. The six horses are vividly reproduced on the stone slab in the form of high relief. Three of them are standing and three are galloping. They have handsome postures, valiant charm, vivid shapes, and expressive eyebrows. It can be said that "the king of Qin conquered the world with his cavalry, and the six horses were outstanding in painting but also worried." Mr. Lu Xun praised Six Horses as an "unprecedented" masterpiece.
Buddha with Two Attendants in a Niche
- Title Translation: å¦ę„äøå°ä½é¾
- Period: Tang, 703 C.E.
- Project: Guangzhai Temple Qibaotai Pagoda
Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi), Vairocana Buddha
- Title Translation: å„å åÆŗ , ęÆå¢é®é£ä½
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This ideaāof the power of one supreme deity over all the othersāresonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
Fengxian Temple (Fengxiansi)
- Title Translation: å„å åÆŗ
- Period: Tang, 618ā907 C.E.
- Project: Sculptures in Longmen Caves
- Work Description: This imposing group of nine monumental images carved into the hard, gray limestone of Fengxian Temple at Longmen is a spectacular display of innovative style and iconography. Sponsored by the Emperor Gaozong and his wife, the future Empress Wu, the high relief sculptures are widely spaced in a semi-circle. The central Vairocana Buddha (more than 55 feet high including its pedestal) is flanked on either side by a bodhisattva, a heavenly king, and a thunderbolt holder (vajrapani). Vairocana represents the primordial Buddha who generates and presides over all the Buddhas of the infinite universes that form Buddhist cosmology. This ideaāof the power of one supreme deity over all the othersāresonated in the vast Tang Empire which was dominated by the Emperor at its summit and supported by his subordinate officials. These monumental sculptures intentionally mirrored the political situation. The dignity and imposing presence of Buddha and the sumptuous appearance of his attendant bodhisattvas is significant in this context. The Buddha, monks and bodhisattvas (above) display new softer and rounder modeling and serene facial expressions. In contrast, the heavenly guardians and the vajrapani are more engaging and animated. Notice the realistic musculature of the heavenly guardians and the forceful poses of the vajrapani.
Shi Fa Chi Steed
- Title Translation: ä»ä¼čµ¤
- Period: Tang, 649 C.E.
- Project: Six Horses of Tang Taizong