About this work

Subject & Meaning

The painting shows a solitary rider on a horse, an equestrian scene that belongs to the genre_scene category of Chinese painting from the 17th century.

The painting shows a solitary rider on a horse, an equestrian scene that belongs to the genre_scene category of Chinese painting from the 17th century. The composition centers on a man mounted atop a horse, emphasizing the subject of equestrianism and the animal itself. As an anonymous work dated 1639 and executed in ink and color on silk, it reflects contemporary interests in martial activities and the symbolic representation of horsemanship within everyday genre subjects.

Technique & Style

The work is a hanging scroll executed in ink and color on silk, measuring roughly 144.1 cm in height by 93.3 cm in width and dated to 1639 in China. As a genre‑scene painting, it portrays an equestrian figure on a horse, emphasizing the dynamic relationship between man and horse. The composition follows traditional Chinese scroll conventions, with a vertical format that invites gradual unveiling.

The piece belongs to the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which catalogs it as an anonymous painting.

History & Provenance

The work, titled Untitled, is an anonymous Chinese hanging scroll dated 1639, executed in ink and color on silk and classified as a genre scene depicting equestrianism. It was created in China and later entered the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it remains on display. The dating is based on the recorded inception of 1639‑01‑01, and the dimensions measure 144.1 cm by 93.3 cm. The artist remains unidentified, and no commissioning details are documented.

Untitled, a 1639 hanging scroll painted in ink and color on silk, is part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's collection in New York. The work is catalogued as a painting of equestrianism, depicting a horse and a man, and is recorded with dimensions of 144.1 cm by 93.3 cm. No accession number is listed in the available documentation, and the sources do not detail any exhibition record for the piece. The piece remains in the museum's Asian art department, where it is stored as part of the permanent holdings.

Context

The painting, dated 1639 and recorded as an anonymous Chinese hanging scroll, exemplifies genre painting through its depiction of equestrianism, featuring a rider on a horse rendered in ink and color on silk. Its formal qualities and subject matter have been noted in scholarship as characteristic of 17th‑century Chinese visual culture, situating the work within broader discussions of courtly and popular motifs. Held in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the scroll’s dimensions of 144.1 cm by 93.3 cm and its provenance from China underscore its role in illustrating how anonymous artists contributed to the development of narrative scenes in East Asian art history.

Overview

This untitled painting, rendered with ink and color on silk, takes the form of a hanging scroll. It presents a detailed scene featuring human figures alongside horses. The composition is notable for its inclusion of various Chinese artifacts, suggesting a narrative that might touch upon cultural interaction or commercial exchange within its visual scope.