The Chinese Explorer Zhang Qian on a Raft

Maejima Sōyū Japanese

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 229

This bearded Chinese gentleman is Zhang Qian, a legendary explorer from the second century bce. Zhang was immortalized in a Yuan dynasty (1271–1368) poem that tells of his riding a log raft to the source of the Yellow River, only to find himself floating in the Milky Way.

On view for rotations 1 and 2

The Chinese Explorer Zhang Qian on a Raft, Maejima Sōyū (active mid-16th century), Hanging scroll; ink on paper, Japan

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