Explore paintings, prints and papercuts depicting legendary figures from Chinese folklore.
The legend of Zhong Kui was first recorded by the Northern Song dynasty writer Shen Kuo (1031-1095) in his Dream Pool Essays, cited in the inscription of this painting. It explains how the Emperor Xuanzong dreamt of an ugly scholar named Zhong Kui who caught demons for him. The Emperor then commissioned a master of figure painting, Wu Daozi, to paint Zhong Kui’s portrait which he approved as a vivid depiction of the dream. Since then, Zhong Kui has been a popular figure in religious, literati, and folk paintings. He was also a favourite subject of Cheng Shifa, from Shanghai, who specialised in figure painting.
Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 24 September-1 December 1996, Modern Chinese Paintings: The Reyes Collection in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, Vainker, Shelagh (Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 1996), no. 13 on p. 23, pp. 9 & 30, illus. p. 23 fig. 13
Zhong Kui
Zhong Kui, or Shōki in Japanese, is a figure from Chinese folklore who appeared to the ailing 8th century Chinese Emperor Xuanzong in a dream and dispatched the demons that were haunting him. Shōki promised the Emperor that he would rid the world of demons.
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