趙幹 (Chao Kan): Travellers along the River in the First Snow.
 
Chao Kan (tenth century), a native of Chiang-ning (Nanking) was a talented landscape painter. He became a student of the Imperial Painting Academy under Emperor Li Yu of the kingdom of Southern T'ang, and was active as a court painter. This work, portraying the riverside area of the Chiang-nan (south of the Yangtze) region in early winter, depicts the fluttering snow in Chinese white throughout the scroll and detailed human figures that are uniquely expressive.

李成 (Li Ch'eng): A Solitary Temple amid Clearing Peaks.
 
Li Ch'eng (919-967), Hsien-hsi by style name, was a native of Ying-ch'iu, Shantung province. He was a descendant of the T'ang imperial household, but instead of realizing the objective of entering government services, devoted himself to poetry, wine, the ch'in zither and painting. He is renowned to have brought North Chinese landscape painting to completion, and his works, in which the p 'ing-yuan ("flat and distant") landscape style was brought to utmost refinement. rendered considerable influence on the development of landscape painting thereafter. This work is a rare masterpiece conveying to this day the golden era of landscape painting of the Northern Sung dynasty. ( Collection of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art )

范寬（Fan K'uan）: Travellers among Mountains and Streams.
 
Fan K'uan (tenth century) was a native of Hua-yuan, Shensi province. His given name was Chung-cheng and his style name was Chung-li. He resolutely maintained traditions, was openhearted, and was indifferent to worldly affairs. He first followed the styles of Li Ch'eng and Ching Hao, but later he took up residence in the areas of Chung-nan and T'ai-hua mountains (Shensi province), where he was able to achieve excellence by directly observing nature. This painting, overflowing with profound and candid voluminousness within its solid composition, is an eternal magnum opus unparalleled in the history of Chinese painting.

黃居寀 (Huang, Chu-Tsai): Mountain Magpie, Sparrows and Bramble.
 
Huang Chu-ts'ai (933 - after 993), Po-luan by style name, was a native of Ch'eng-tu, Szechwan province. As the son of Huang Ch'uan, the master of bird-and-flower painting from the Five Dynasties period, he inherited the painting skills of his father and accomplished remarkable achievements in works of this category. The painting style developed by the father and son became the criterion of bird-and-flower painting produced by the Imperial Painting Academy from Sung times onward. This piece, tinted in subdued colors, are executed in gentle yet firm brushstrokes that are slightly naive. It is an excellent example of early bird-and-flower painting that not only embodies decorativeness but is also imbued with an archaic and unaffected atmosphere.

郭熙 (Kuo Hsi): Early Spring.
 
Kuo Hsi (eleventh century) was a native of Wen-hsien, Honan province. His style name was Shun-fu (Ch'un-fu). He was a follower of Li Ch'eng, but while the latter had a perfect command of s in light ink, Kuo Hsi placed importance on the of space incorporating the atmosphere as well as light and darkness, thus completing a more idealized state. This painting, in which preeminent talent is inferred from the profound and exquisite brushstrokes, is an outstanding masterpiece of Northern Sung painting along with Fan K'uan's "Travellers among Mountains and Streams".

徽宗 （Emperor Hui-tsung）: Wild Birds on Wild Prunus.
 
Emperor Hui-tsung (1082-1135), whose family name was Chao and given name was Chi, was the eleventh son of the Sung Emperor Shen-tsung. Hui-tsung, well known as a literati emperor devoted to prose and poetry, was skilled in calligraphy and painting. He was talented in human figure and bird-and-flower paintings, and showed prominence in the vivid depiction of figures. He fully demonstrated his preeminent talent for the three accomplishments of poetry, calligraphy and painting in this work, on which he inscribed a pentasyllabic verse in the shou-chin ("slender gold") style.

李唐 （Li T'ang）: Whispering Pines in the Gorges.
 
Li T'ang (1049-1130) was a native of Ho-yang, Honan province. His style name was Hsi-ku. He first followed the landscape style of the T'ang painter Li Ssu-hsun, but later changed to a newer style. This piece, produced when Li T'ang was seventy-six years old, confronts the viewer with its overwhelming voluminousness. Depicted in adept brushstrokes, it is the most complete and the unparalleled masterpiece among the paintings attributed to him.

李迪（Li Ti）: Homeward Oxherds in Wind and Rain.
 
Li Ti (twelfth century) was a native of Ho-yang, Honan province. He was active as a painter of the Southern Sung Imperial Painting Academy under Emperors Hsiao-tsung and Kuang-tsung. A new spirit was shown especially in his minutely depicted bird-and-flower and human figure paintings. This work, with its detailed yet fluent brushstrokes, occupies a position worthy of special attention among other pieces by Li Ti.

劉松年 （Liu Sung-nien）: Lohan (Arhat).
 
Liu Sung-nien (second half of the twelfth century to the first half of the thirteenth century) was a native of Ch'ien- t'ang (Hangchow). He studied under Chang Tun-li, was gifted in painting human figures and landscapes, which are known for their exquisiteness. Many Buddhist paintings, this work being a representative example, were produced in the Sung dynasty as furnishings in Ch'an temples reflecting the popularity of this Buddhist sect in the period. The minute and substantial brushstrokes seen throughout the painting render the quintessence of the painter's dexterity.

馬遠(yuǎn) （Ma Yuan）: Egrets on a Snowy Bank.
 
Ma Yuan (second half of the twelfth century to the first half of the thirteenth century), Ch'in-shan by sobriquet, was a native of Ho-chung, Shansi province. He gave glory to the latter phase of the Southern Sung Imperial Painting Academy together with Hsia Kuei. A follower of Li T'ang's style, he excelled in landscape painting, in which he imparted his unique character in the trees and rocks executed with burnt ink. He was called "One-cornered Ma" for his of abbreviating the peak when depicting mountains or omitting the scenery under cliffs. This work is Ma Yuan's masterpiece full of serenity and clearly indicating his characteristics.

夏圭（Hsia Kuei）: Pure and Remote Views of Mountains and Streams.
 
Hsia Kuei (second half of the twelfth century to the first half of the thirteenth century) was a native of Ch'ien-t'ang (Hangchow). He was a representative court painter of the Southern Sung dynasty together with Ma Yuan and Liang K'ai. This long landscape scroll is an outstanding masterpiece traditionally attributed to Hsia Kuei. Scenes of pure and remote views of mountains and streams undergo diverse changes within the scroll with its transcendent composition and astounding brushwork.

趙孟頫 (Chao Meng-fu): Autumn Colors on the Ch'ueh and Hua.
 
Chao Meng-fu (1254-1322), Tzu-ang by style name and Sung-hsueh tao-jen by sobriquet, was a native of Wu-hsing, Chekiang province. He was the eleventh generation descendant of the Sung Emperor T'ai-tsu. He was very brilliant, and was well versed in poetry, calligraphy and painting. His calligraphy which followed the ancient style was celebrated to be the best in the Yuan dynasty, and his painting which also paid homage to the ancient style was distinguished in the depiction of landscapes and human figures. This painting, produced when he was forty-two for his friend Chou Mi (Kung-chin), is Chao's representative work depicted in clear, beautiful colors.

倪瓚 (Ni Tsan): The Jung-hsi Studio.
 
Ni Tsan (1301-1374) was a native of Wu-hsi, Kiangsu province. His style name was Yuan-chen and his sobriquet was Yun-lin. His character and conduct were pure and upright, he liked to read, followed Taoism, probed into Ch'an Buddhist studies, and was celebrated during his times for his poetry and prose. In his late years he abandoned his fields and residence, obtained a small boat, and spent his life on lakes and rivers. This work, produced when Ni Tsan was seventy-two, was painted for his friend Po-hsuan. It is a masterpiece indicating the sublime state of literati painting in its use of the dry brush and strokes utilizing the side of the brush.

唐寅 ( T'ang Yin): Hermit Fisherman in Streams and Mountains.
 
T'ang Yin's painting style is extensive, encompassing that of the contemporaneous Wu school literati painters as well as that in the manner of Li T'ang of the Sung dynasty Imperial Painting Academy. This work is an example of the latter. A firm sense of presence is imparted to the rocks depicted with abundant axe-cut texture strokes used by Li T'ang, and the more refined colors render an elegant atmosphere different from that of Li T'ang's works. This is a superb work ranked with "Soughing Pines on a Mountain Path."

仇英 (Ch'iu Ying) : Pavilions in the Deep Mountains.
 
Ch'iu Ying (1494 ?-1552 ?), Shih-fu by style name and Shih-chou by sobriquet, was a native of T'ai-ts'ang, Kiangsu province. His talent to paint was recognized at an early age by Chou Ch'en. He mastered the exquisite flavor of old Sung and Yuan dynasty paintings and became a celebrated Ming dynasty painter of court ladies. He also created his own style in landscape painting by reverting to Sung and Yuan works as well as studying from Chou Ch'en and T'ang Yin, and mastered the secrets of miniature painting that depicted "inch-high people and pea-sized horses." This piece, produced when Ch'iu Ying was fifty-seven, is a gem among his works.

徐 渭 (Hsu Wei): Pomegranates.
 
Hsu Wei (1521-1593) was a native of Shan-yin, Chekiang province. His style names were first Wen-ch'ing and later Wen- chang. His sobriquets were T'ien-ch'ih and Ch'ing-t'eng. He excelled in poetry and classical prose, and gifted in the semi-cursive script after the style of Mi Fei. He studied flowering plant painting for the first time in his middle years, and became a precursor of the flowering plant and miscellaneous painting of the Ch'ing dynasty with his entirely unrestrained manner that abandoned tradition. This work is unsurpassed in its spontaneous rendition of drooping branches and the pomegranates indicating the adroit use of the p'o-mo (so-called "splashed ink") technique, as well as the self- inscribed title poetry.

董其昌 (Tung Ch'i-ch'ang): Discussing Connoisseurship at Feng-ching.
 
Tung Ch'i-ch'ang (1555-1636) was a native of Hua-t'ing, near Shanghai. His style name was Hsuan-tsai, and his sobriquets were Ssu-pai and Hsiang-kuang. He was a celebrated calligrapher from an early age, and his semi-cursive script was designated as the preeminent in the Ming dynasty. He was also a gifted painter, talented in landscapes in the Sung and Yuan styles. He gave immeasurable influence to the artistic circles of the Ming dynasty as the leader of the Nan-tsung-hua (Southern School of Painting). This work, painted when he was forty-eight, is a masterpiece with overflowing sensitivity.

惲壽平 (Yun Shou-p'ing): Old Trees and Bamboos in the style of Ni Tsan.
 
Yun Shou-p'ing (1633-1690), Ko by original name, was a native of Wu-chin, Kiangsu province. His style name was Shou-p'ing, by which he became known later, and thus he assumed another style name Cheng-shu. His sobriquet was Nan-t'ien. He was a gifted landscape painter, but after realizing that he could not be equal in this genre to Wang Hui, his friend, he turned to paintings of flowering plants and developed a new phase in the mo-ku-fa ("boneless method") painting technique. Yun excelled in tasteful landscapes depicted on a narrow artwork plane. This work, executed in the style of the Yuan dynasty painter Ni Tsan, is a good representation of Yun's style.

朗史寧 (Lang Shih-Ning): Brocade of Spring.
 
This is a fine example which indicates well the special features of Lang Shih-ning's brilliant use of color. The T'ai-hu rock, cherished for its extraordinary form, and other elements displaying the flavor of Chinese ink painting are added to the theme of golden pheasants and flowers executed in utmost realism based on Western-style painting.

源氏物語絵巻（Genji Monogatari Emaki)
 

信貴山縁起絵巻 (Shigisan Engi Emaki)
 

伴大納言絵詞（ Ban Dainagon Ekotoba )
 

王羲之 (Wang Hsi-chih): Yuan-huan-t'ieh.
 
The piece is a first-class copy made in the T'ang dynasty showing the true character of Wang Hsi-chih, the Immortal Calligrapher. It is also included in the Shih-ch'i-t'ieh, which can be called the sacred book of the cursive script. The work, which is a letter in the concise format unique to Wang Hsi-chih, indicates a divine state in the beautiful form of the cursive script, the singular execution of angular strokes, and its full refinement and elegance.

顏真卿 (Yen Chen-ch'ing): Funeral Address for Nephew Chi-ming.
 
Yen Chen-ch'ing (709-785) was a native of Lin-i, Shantung province. His style name was Ch'ing-ch'en. He died a martyr to his honor as the most loyal subject of the T'ang dynasty. He cultivated a calligraphy style which opened a radically new phase. In particular, this handscroll, the most famous among his "Three Drafts" in semi-cursive script, stands out eternally as the only authentic work by Yen Chen-ch'ing. It is the manuscript of the funeral address for his nephew Chiming, who was killed during the rebellion of An Lu-shan. The intense emotion of sadness seems to break forth from the tip of his brush.

懷 素 (Huai-su): Tzu-hsu-t'ieh (Autobiography).
 
Huai-su, ranked together with Chang Hsu, the "genius of the cursive script," as "Chang the Mad and Huai the Crazy," was talented in the wild and unrestricted k'uang-ts'ao ("wild cursive script") style. It is said that he was fond of alcoholic drinks, and in the state of intoxication he would dash off calligraphy as he pleased, for which the citizens of the capital at the time scrambled to own. This handscroll is a masterpiece thoroughly representing his true character. The effect of the wild untrammeled manner, the truth of which he is said to have obtained through drink, is exhaustively expressed in this work.

蘇軾(Su Shih): Poem "On Cold Meal at Huang-chou".
 
Su Shih (1036-1101), was a native of Mei-shan, Szechwan province. His style name was Tzu-chan and his sobriquet was Tung- p'o. He is counted as one of the Eight Great Masters of T'ang and Sung prose and as one of the Four Great Masters of Sung calligraphy, and is considered the typical literati of the Sung dynasty. This manuscript is a poem composed by him during his banishment to Huang-chou after having been defeated at a political dispute. The work is his masterwork indicating his repleted vigor in his refined touches and embodying his undaunted spirit. The colophon by Huang T'ing-chien competes for excellence in calligraphy.

黃庭堅 (Huang T'ing-chien): Poems by Han-shan and the Hermit P'ang Yun.
 
Huang T'ing-chien (1045-1105) was a native of Fen-ning, Kiangsi province. His style name was Lu-chih. His sobriquets were Shan-ku tao-jen and Fu-weng. He was a follower of Su Shih, and excelled in poetry, prose, calligraphy and painting. However, he became a victim of a political dispute and died in exile in I-chou. He is one of the Four Great Masters of Sung calligraphy. This work is an inscription of the poem exhorting good and admonishing evil by the legendary T'ang dynasty Buddhist sage Han-shan and that extolling the virtues of the Buddha by the unique hermit P'ang Yun. It is T'ing- chien masterpiece produced in his later years, which indicates the magnanimity of his touches as well as the temperament of his superb spirit and abnegation of worldly affairs.