The Riverside Scene of Qingming Festival 清明上河图 is one of the ten most famous works of art in China.

1. The Riverside Scene of Qingming Festival 清明上河图
(Compiled by Glenda Gao from GoGo Mandarin) ~ www.gogomandarin.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MX14haeDebk
“Riverside Scene of the Qingming Festival” is one
of the ten most famous works of art in China. The
original painting was 528 cms long and 24.8 cms
wide. The earliest edition of the painting was
produced during the Northern Song (1085-1145)
dynasty by the artist Zhang Zeduan and took 10
years to paint. It is now housed in the Museum of
the Forbidden City in Beijing.
《清明上河图》是中国十大传世名画之一。原画长528公分，
高24.8公分，最早的版本是北宋（1085-1145）画家张择端
历十年画成。现藏于北京故宫博物馆。

2. This work, which takes the form of a long scroll,
records the sights in Bianjing (modern day Kaifeng),
a city of the Northern Song Dynasty and showcases
life in the city for all the various strata of
Chinese society at that time.
作品以长卷形式，生动记录了中国十二世纪北宋汴京（今
开封）的城市面貌和当时汉族社会各个阶层人民的生活状
况。
The Rainbow Bridge in the middle acts as the
centre-piece for the entire painting. It is high
enough to allow the biggest vessels working the
Bian River to pass beneath it and is wide and
strong enough to withstand the stress of horse-
drawn carts driven along its structure dragging
fully laden barges underneath it. The Bian River
which flowed through Bianjing was the main traffic
hub between north and south China and so was of
vital importance to the capital of the Northern
Song because all manner of daily necessities and

3. precious cargoes relied upon transportation on the
Bian River. The picture shows the river craft
shuttling back and forth and the coolies carrying
goods.
画面中的虹桥是整幅画轴的焦点。高大得使汴河流域最大
的船舶都能顺利穿越，宽阔坚固得能并排行驶几辆装满货
物的畜力车。流贯汴京的汴河是当时南北交通枢纽，对北
宋京城十分重要，因为城中的民生所需，奇珍百物都全靠
汴河供应。画中随处可见穿梭的船舶，搬运货物的苦力。
In the picture we can also see all sorts of
commercial activity: wine selling, fortune-telling,
a shop selling all manner of cereals and grains, a
second-hand goods shop, a shop selling kitchen
utensils, an archery shop, a lantern shop, a shop
selling musical instruments, a jewelry shop, a
textile shop, picture galleries, medicine shops and
restaurants.
在画面中我们还看到各式各样的商业活动：卖酒的，算命
的，壳物市场，二手商品店，厨具店，弓箭店，灯笼店，

4. 乐器店，金饰店，布庄，画廊，药店，餐厅等。
What is noteworthy is the apparent absence of women
in the scene. The womenfolk of wealthy families
only travelled in palanquins when they ventured
outside, occasionally peeping outside and with
servant girls waiting beside the palanquins.
Peasant womenfolk only made an appearance when
buying goods at the market. Women rarely
frequented wine bars or teashops. From this, we
can deduce that women were not expected to show
their faces in public and so led a relatively
restricted life in Northern Song society.
值得一提的是画面中的妇女形象不多。大户人家的妇女上
街都得坐轿，坐在轿中半遮面偷窥街景，并有婢女侍侧。
农家妇女也只有在购物时才外出。酒樓、茶肆更不是婦女
人家流連之地，由此可見宋代社會對婦女「拋頭露面」的
限制。
The picture shows 814 people, 60 or so animals, 29
river craft, 30 buildings with various special

5. features, 20 vehicles of various types, 8 bridges
and 170 types of tree. The people in the picture
are wearing an assortment of clothing and assume a
variety of moods which really brings the picture to
life. No effort has been spared to depict all
manner of activity and scenes typical of the time.
For instance, the cargo on board the river craft,
the riveting of those craft and the knotted ropes
are all depicted very clearly, rendering the whole
work a real masterpiece. The presentation of the
artwork is very ingenious, demonstrates much skill
and manifests itself in a work of great historical
and artistic value.
画中有814人，牲畜60多匹，船只29艘，各有特色的房屋楼
宇共30多栋，车20辆，桥8座，树木170多棵。画中的人物
衣着不同，神情各异，栩栩如生；其间还穿插各种活动，
注重情节，绘画一丝不苟。比如，船只上的物件，钉铆方
式甚至结绳系扣都交代的一清二楚 ，令人叹为观止。 笔
墨章法都很巧妙，颇见功底，具有很高的历史价值和艺术
价值。

6. To note: There are three versions of Riverside
Scene of the Qingming Festival. The one shown here
is the first and original version.
注：《清明上河图》共有三个版本。在此用的插图是原本。
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For a digital version, please click:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MX14haeDebk