Magnificent frescos in the Tang Dynasty

Murals, one of the ancient Chinese artistic forms, were well-noted for their history of over 2,000 years. This art form is known for its distinction in Chinese painting and plays an important part in the history of world civilization.

As a religious faith which, encouraged by royalty, had a mass following, Buddhism left a deep mark in the political, economic and cultural spheres during the height of Tang. To propagate Buddhist doctrines to fortify its own rule, the royal palace and many pagodas and temples were erected and grottoes dug. These were invariably embellished with sculptures and paintings, which explains the large member of engravings and graphic arts to be found in Tang Dynasty temples and grottoes. The Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang have 1,352 caves, 750 niches and 97,000 Buddhist images, more than half of which belong to the height of Tang. In Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, Gansu province, there are 492 caves with more than 2,100 coloured sculptured figures and murals covering more than 45,000 square metres, many of which date back to the golden age of Tang Dynasty. These artistic gems were executed by a perfect combination of Indian and traditional Chinese methods. The Tang paintings were not confined to Buddhist architecture alone, many were also found in imperial palaces and mausoleums.

In the early 70s, a good deal of Tang tombs, treasuries of art, were successfully excavated 50 miles around the ancient capital city of Chang'an. The murals and historic relics unearthed from the tombs created a furore among painters, artists and historians all over China as well as among experts abroad. The spectacular frescos with their particular contents provided invaluable first-hand material for the study of the history of Chinese fine arts, figure painting in the Tang Dynasty and techniques of mural painting. Splendid and realistic, the frescos in the tombs of Princess Yongtai, Crown Prince Zhanghuai, Crown Prince Yide (all excavated in Qianxian County) and Li Shou, the Prince of Peace, in Sanyuan County, vividly reflect the positions of the occupants and truly unfold the court etiquette, dressing styles, and life patterns of the time.

Paintings of Palace Maids in Princess Yongtai's tomb, Watching Bird and Catching Cicada in Crown Prince Zhanghuai's tomb, Playing Polo, Receiving Foreign Guests and Hunting Procession can be favourable compared with Travelling by Carriage and Portraits of the Kings in History by the great Tang painter Yan Liben.