Twenty-Four Beauties

Twenty-Four Beauties , circa 1736–1795, Qing dynasty (1644–1911)

Where object was made: China

Material/technique: ink; color; paper

Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 25.5 x 279 cm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 10 1/16 x 109 13/16 in

Credit line: William Bridges Thayer Memorial

Accession number: 1928.0154

Not on display

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This Chinese handscroll is an example of “beautiful women” painting that featured historical and legendary female figures. Viewing the handscroll from right to left, the 18th beauty holds a cloth-covered qin, or string instrument, and most likely represents Zhuo Wenjun, a second century heroine who left her wealthy family to pursue a romance with a destitute scholar named Sima Xiangru. Although some of the women can be identified, most are idealized representations of beauty, talent, and virtue. Depicted with slender figures, oval faces, and sloping shoulders—the ideal of beauty in late-imperial China—individual attributes such as a musical instrument, book, or sword associated each individual with literary or artistic cultivation.