Artwork Details
Nationality
Creation Date
Materials
Object Types
Dimensions
63-3/4 x 38-1/4 in. (image) 104-1/2 x 42-1/4 in. (mount) 104-1/2 x 46-1/2 in. (installation)
Dynasty
Accession Number
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. John H. Roberts, Jr.
Copyright
Collection
Asian Art (Chinese and other Asian)
Color Palette
Provenance
Mrs. John H. Roberts, Jr.; given to the Indianapolis Museum of Art in 1975.
Gallery Labels
貨郎
In the past, the arrival of an itinerant salesman was a welcome sight in villages. During the Song dynasty (960–1279), when all sorts of everyday scenes became worthy subjects for artists, a toy peddler, often carrying a huge rack of goods on his back, was a popular theme.
The cart has many birds and insects in cages for the amusement of the vendor’s young customers. Because the peddler’s clothes are not those of the low merchant class and the style of depiction is not the ragged and angular brushstrokes typically used for subjects from the lower classes, it is possible that this is a portrait of a wealthy patron playing a role.
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