本圖現藏台北故宮博物院
Liu Kuan-tao, a native of present day Hopeh province, was a celebrated court painter of the early Yuan Dynasty. His figure paintings were in the style of the early Chin and T'ang masters, while his landscapes followed the styles of Li Ch'eng and Kuo Hsi. His animal and bird-and-flower paintings combined the virtues of the old masters to become famous at the time.
Appearing against a backdrop of northern steppes and desert is a scene of figures on horseback. The one sitting on a dark horse and wearing a white fur coat is most likely the famous Mongol emperor Kublai Khan with his empress next to him. They are accompanied by a host of servants and officials; the one to the left is about to shoot an arrow at one of the geese in the sky above. The figure wearing blue has a dutch-style hooded white gyrfalcon (海東青hai-dong-qing, or 松鶻 song-gu) and the one wearing green has a saker (兔鶻tu-gu) or dark gyrfalcon on their right gloved hand, and a trained Asiatic cheetah sits on the back of the horse in front. we can also see a sight hound on the right, maybe a central Asian Tazy breed. Two dark-skinned figures are perhaps from south Asia or Africa. In the background, a camel caravan proceeds slowly behind a sandy slope, adding a touch of life to the barren scenery. Every aspect of this work has been rendered with exceptional detail. Appearing quite realistic, even the representation of Kublai Khan in this painting corresponds quite closely to his imperial portrait in the Museum collection. Though few of Liu Kuan-tao's paintings have survived, this work serves as testimony to his fame in Yuan court art. The artist's signature and the date (1280) appear in the lower left.
This painting is a collection of Taipei 國立故宮博物院 National Palace Museum
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