Minneapolis Institute of Art

Panel, one of a set of four

ChinaLinkedCulture matchlcp-7111c01d5494

Date: early 20th century
Medium: silk
Department: Asian Art
Institution: Minneapolis Institute of Art
Object ID: 16908

From the Minneapolis Institute of Art record

In the Daoist belief system, the eight immortals are powerful figures with supernatural abilities to bestow life or destroy evil. Each panel in this set illustrates two of the eight immortals with their attributes: Lü Dongbin with his emblem, a sword, slung across his back, and Zhang Guolao, holding the yugu , a kind of musical instrument in the shape of a bamboo tube (first panel); Zhongli Quan, with a bare belly, holding a fan in his hand, and Han Xiangzi, performing on the flute (second panel); Cao Guojiu, with a characteristic court headdress and official robes, holding a pair of castanets, and Lan Caihe, who carries an elixir of immortality such as a lingzhi fungus (third panel); He Xian'gu, the only female figure of the group, carrying a lotus leaf that bears a peach, and Li Tieguai, holding a pilgrim's gourd from which a scroll is escaping, emblematic of his power to set his spirit free from the body (fourth panel). China, Asia

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