Rubbing from Wu Liang Ci: Section of a Carved Wall from the Wu Family Shrines, Rear Group no. 4

This modern ink rubbing of an ancient Chinese stone relief belongs to the most famous group of Han dynasty pictorial images that was created around the mid-2nd century for a number of mortuary buildings known collectively as the “Wu Family Shrines.” The rectangular composition of the stone original is divided into four tiers functioning as four horizontal “scrolls” exhibiting divinities, mythical animals, and celestial chariots in rhythmic movement. Together, they form symbolic representations of clouds, thunder and lightning, the wind, and stars—in essence, a microcosm of the universe. In these and related Han dynasty stone carvings, Heaven is conceived as a collection of nature deities who reward good and punish evil.

Each register contains a large figure whose dominant position is reinforced by the motion and gestures of the smaller secondary figures. In the top register, for example, the figure on the far right who bends his knees while vigorously blowing air is the God of Wind. The wind blowing from his mouth transforms itself into a series of fantastic beings moving toward the left side of the image, where they are greeted by a celestial official. Among the wind-made figures is a chariot driven by fairies; the chariot’s canopy and wheels are composed of spirals evoking whiling clouds.