Collection Online as of October 3, 2023

Herdboys and Buffalo in Landscapes

牧牛圖

1200s

Part of a set. See all set records

Guo Min 郭敏

(Chinese, mid-late 1200s)

China, Qixian, Yuan dynasty

(1271-1368)

Pair of hanging scrolls; ink on silk

Painting: 92.7 x 56.5 cm (36 1/2 x 22 1/4 in.)

John L. Severance Fund 1999.216

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

Tending water buffalos has traditionally been the task of young boys and can still be seen in rural areas of Southern China today.

Description

Herdboys tend their buffalo in a bucolic landscape by a winding stream. Guo Min emphasizes the massive forms and mighty power of the animals, transforming them into forces of nature.

The poem in the first scroll reads: "The bulls are engaging in fighting, Cautiously, each seeks to overcome the other. The herdboy calmly stands by. Untying his belt, he silently watches."

The poem in the second scroll reads: "Together, they wade through the middle of the stream, Mindless of perils in the journey. The grass grows tall in the village ahead, While the mist and rain spread far and wide."

Inscriptions

Inscription

努力還相鬪，爭強不自安。/ 牧童閑退立，解帶靜中看。/ 伯達

Inscription Translation

Inscription at upper right of the first hanging scroll: The bulls are engaged in fighting,/ Cautiously, each seeks to overcome the other./ The herdboy calmly stands by./ Untying his belt, he silently watches./ Signed "Boda"

Inscription

齊向中流渡，那知行路難。/ 前村青草長，煙雨□漫漫。/ 伯達

Inscription Translation

Inscription at upper right of second hanging scroll: Together, they wade through the middle of the stream,/ Mindless of perils in the journey./ The grass grows tall in the village ahead,/ While the mist and rain spread far and wide./ Signed “Boda”

Inscription Remark

The “□” indicates a lost word.

Provenance

Shokado Shojo 松花堂昭乗 [1584–1639], Japan

Otokoyama Hachiman-gu 男山八幡宮, Kyoto, Japan

Baron Morimura Kaisaku 男爵森村開作 [1873–1962], Japan

?–1999

(Kaikodo America Inc., New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)

1999–

The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Citations

Kokka no. 355 (1919) pp. 202-206. pp. 202-206

Harada, Kinjirō 原田謹次郎. Nihon genzai Shina meiga mokuroku 日本現在支那名畫目錄. Tōkyō: Ōtsuka Kōgeisha, 1938. p. 124

Kaikodo (Autumn 1999), no. 2, pp. 94-95, 246-49. pp. 94-95, 246-49

Cleveland Museum of Art, “Cleveland Museum of Art Acquires Rare Chinese Paintings, Baroque Porcelain Plaque and Other New Acquisitions Exhibited with Hanging Scrolls,” December 20, 1999, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives. archive.org

Chou, Ju-hsi and Anita Chung. Silent poetry: Chinese paintings from the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2015. Reproduced: pp. 97-99

Chou, Ju-hsi and Anita Chung. Silent poetry: Chinese paintings from the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2015. p. 97

Exhibition history

Main Asian Rotation (Gallery 242). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (July 28, 2014-January 7, 2015).

China through the Magnifying Glass: Masterpieces in Miniature and Detail. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 11, 2022-February 26, 2023).