Yuandai huasu ji 元代畫塑記

Yuandai huasu ji 元代畫塑記 is a book on painting written during the late Yuan period 元 (1279-1368) by an unknown person. The text was originally a chapter (Huasu men 畫塑門) in the statecraft encyclopaedia Jingshi dadian 經世大典 (part Gongdian 工典), which is lost. However, fragments of it survive as quotations in other books. In the early Republican period, Wen Daoxi 文道希 extracted the painting chapter from the Ming-period 明 (1368-1644) encyclopaedia Yongle dadian 永樂大典 and gave it the present name, by which it is included in the series Guangcang Xuejiong congshu 廣倉學窘叢書.

This book primarily records the materials and supplies used by court artists during the Yuan dynasty, from 1295 to 1330, in painting and weaving portraits of emperors and nobility, as well as sculpting Buddhist and Daoist images. Although it is not a specialised treatise on art, its faithful documentation of such imperial artistic projects provides valuable historical material for the study of Yuan court artists and their sculpting and painting activities.

The text is roughly divided into four sections, namely imperial portraits (Yurong 御容), Confucian and Daoist images (Ru-dao xiang 儒道像), Buddhist images (Foxiang 佛像), and miscellaneous utensils (Za qiyong 雜器用), i.e., materials used to cast copper poles for hanging banners and flags.

The Yuandai huasu ji records the artistic activities of renowned court artists during the Yuan period. Since the Yuan dynasty abolished the official Painting Academy (huayuan 畫院), artists who made a living through painting and sculpture in the court were regarded as craftsmen, resulting in very few records about them. The book provides concrete details, such as in 1317, when Liu Yuan 劉元 (c. 1240-1324) sculpted the Four Heavenly Kings (si tianwang 四天王) at the Shanmen Gate 山門 of Qingta Temple 青塔寺, and in the following year, the Four Heavenly Kings of Xiangshan 香山. There are also extensive records of the famous sculptor Araniko (1244-1306; Chinese name Anige 阿尼哥) from the region of Nepal, who was overseeing the casting of a bronze Buddha statue for the Zhongxin Ge 中心閣. Araniko also sculpted the Three Pure Ones (sanqing 三清) for Daoist temples. Additionally, the book documents the works and activities of other artists, both Chinese and foreign.

The detailed records of court painting and sculpture projects in this book also help better understand the layout and artistic style of Buddhist temples and Daoist shrines during the Yuan period. Comparing the books's records with the extant sculptures and murals in Yuan-era grottoes and temples will undoubtedly provide deeper insights and understanding of Yuan-period painting and sculpture art. Detailed statements also give insight into the lavishness with which the Yuan government carried out temple projects.

Some records in the book also reveal the Yuan government's attitude toward the arts. It is commonly believed that early Yuan emperors did not value traditional Chinese calligraphy and painting. However, this book reveals that as early as 1300, over 600 outstanding works of calligraphy and painting were selected from the archives of the Palace Library and specially sent to Hangzhou 杭州. Skilled artisans were ordered to carefully mount and frame them, and the works were stored in wooden and lacquered boxes made from fine timber from the Jiangnan region.

The text is found in the series Zhongguo meishu lunzhu congkan 中國美術論著叢刊 (1964, reproduction of the 1915 edition), Guangcang Xuejiong congshu 廣倉學窘叢書 (1916)