Immortal Mountain Poetry

Close up view of the landscape artwork mounted to this silk brocade wall scroll

This is a reproduction of an ancient mountain scene. The original artwork dates back to the mid-1500s. One version hangs in the National Museum in Taipei, the other is in the Palace Museum in Beijing. Neither of those is for sale, and this reproduction is about $60,000 cheaper even if they were for sale.

The place depicted is known as “Xian Shan” or "Immortal Mountain" in Chinese. Some will argue this is "Huang Shan" or Yellow Mountain in Southern China. Also, the word immortal is sometimes translated as fairy.

The title is 仙山賦 (Xian Shan Fu) which literally translates as Immortal Mountain Poetry. The piece is also known as Immortal Mountain Pavilion. The pavilion part is probably because of the large estate (ergo pavilion) in the lower portion of the artwork. One can imagine such a place as a suitable residence for one of the famous eight immortals.

There is also a long ancient poem written along the top of the artwork. Along with that are a series of red chop stamps. These stamps allude to the practice of high-level imperial officers or statesmen stamping artwork that they approved of. Also, various owners of the artwork would put their stamp on it (an original anti-theft device).

The special handmade tea-stained paper gives this a lovely antique look. Even though this is a partial print that is finished with some handwork, each one is unique because of the handwork and mottling in the handmade paper.