Minneapolis Institute of Art

Rubbing from the Wu Family Shrine Depicting Centuries Meeting Lao-tz'u

China

Date

2nd century

Medium

Ink on paper

Department

Asian Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

A stone slab, discovered in 1786 at the site of the Wu family cemetary, illustrates the meeting of Confucius and Lao-tz'u. The two great teachers, legendary Bronze Age founders of the Confucian and Taoist schools of philosophy, are shown dressed in formal robes conversing in the center of the rubbing. The scene accords generally with records in the Confucian classics which identify the driver of Confucius' chariot as the master's disciple, Nan kung Ching shu. The bird held by Confucius is a turtle dove. According to the Chou Li (Rites of Chou), a Confucian ritual book, an official in a formal meeting held a bird of a particular species to indicate his rank. Confucius had been sent by the Duke of Lu to inquire of Lao tz'u about ritual conduct. China, Asia

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