LUNGO IL FIUME DURANTE IL FESTIVAL QINGMING

ALONG THE RIVER DURING THE QINGMING FESTIVAL
China, Qing dynasty

Title in the initial right margin: 清明上河圖 (Qingming shanghe tu, “Along the river during the Qingming festival); two seal in the final left margin.

Horizontal scroll painted in ink and colors on silk, 25 x 640 cm

Provenance: private collection in Rome.

It is a good quality copy of one of the most celebrated paintings in the entire history of Chinese painting, currently kept in the Palace Museum in Beijing. Traditionally attributed to Zhang Zeduan (1085-1145), it depicts a multitude of characters in the city of Kaifeng, capital of the empire during the Song dynasty, engaged in various activities during the festival known as Qingming.