Paying homage to Xiwangmu, the Queen Mother of the West

A circular fan painting in ink and muted color shows robed figures ascending a stone-terraced staircase toward a pavilion with a balustrade. Pine branches frame the upper left, and a small figure stands at a gate beside the stair. The composition moves diagonally from the lower right toward the palace.

Look closer: A small figure stands at a gate at the lower left, nearly lost in the dark ground.

Artist

Unidentified artist

Date

15th century

Medium

Fan mounted as an album leaf; ink and color on silk

Source

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Size

3791 × 3716 px

Credit (appreciated, not required for public-domain works): The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1923