Page 514 - The Golden Age of Chinese Archaeology: Celebrated Discoveries from the People’s Republic of China

the better-known developments in the art of paint- during the Southern Song period (1127-1279 CE),
ing during this same period. Other than Wang testify to its recovery, but even they are not as im-
Chuzhi's tomb, the most dramatic demonstration of pressive as the painted stone reliefs in the tomb of
this new, high standard can be seen in the extensive Wang Chuzhi. RB
program of Buddhist sculpture and painted stone
reliefs created during the succeeding Song dynasty 1 Illustrated in Yang 19973,112 -113.
2 In the National Palace Museum, Taipei; reproduced in
(960-1279 CE) at a cave-temple site near Chengdu Palace Museum 1961, no. 10.
in Dazu county, Sichuan province. 7 3 The section of the scroll, now cut into four parts, that
Buddhism, with its constant need for the includes the musicians is reproduced in Blunden and
Elvin 1988, 202-203. See also Fong 1992, 34-39.
creation of new and more elaborate stone-carved 4 Hebei 1996!), 28. Separate groups of male and female
cave-temples across China, had traditionally been musicians depicted in multiple panels of painted, carved
the main impetus behind pictorial stone sculpture, brick are the main feature of the tomb of Feng Hui
(d. 958), Yang and Yan 1994, 48-55. Another male band
but the national persecution of Buddhism in 845 found in a Liao tomb dated 1116 and a female band from a
brought an end to the great cycle of such construc- Baisha tomb dated 1099 are reproduced in Laing 1988 -
1989, figs. 41, 42.
tion and expansion. Private efforts to rebuild in
5 Shaanxi 1996, 6.
the aftermath of that great tragedy began with such 6 Especially noteworthy in tomb decoration is a set of
projects as the new temple site at Dazu in the late painted, carved brick reliefs found in the tomb of Feng
Hui, excavated in Binxian county, Shaanxi province (cited
ninth century, but the rapid decline and end of the
in note 4 above). Su Bai 1957, plate 22, illustrates another
Tang dynasty and its breakup into numerous small painted relief panel said to be made from carved brick set
states and kingdoms prevented further develop- into a plaster wall that was found in a Baisha tomb dated
1099. Many other examples of relief sculpture dating to
ment until much later in the Song period, after
the Jin dynasty are reproduced and discussed in Laing
reunification in 960. 1988 -1989. A complete survey and analysis of Song tombs
It is possible that the marked advances in tomb has been conducted by Kuhn; see, for example, Kuhn 1994,
11-159.
design and decoration in the tenth and eleventh 7 Dazu 1984.
centuries owe something to the displacement of
so many painters, sculptors, and craftsmen in the
aftermath of the Buddhist persecution of 845.
The Buddhist Church only began to regain some
of its lost power and influence well after 960 and
the establishment of the Song dynasty. The Dazu
cave-temples, most of which were completed

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