Mural Painting in Tombs for china

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Different from grotto murals, tomb murals at the time were mainly about real life. The theme was mainly description of the luxurious life of the tomb owner and his wish of going to heaven. Tomb murals of this period were developed from that of Han dynasty. Only the social life in reality was depicted more comprehensively and the painting art was improved greatly.

The representatives in this period were murals from Wei and Jin tombs in Jiayu Pass; Dingjiazha tomb mural, Koguryo tomb mura1, Lou Rui tomb mural, Li Xian tomb mural. The Jiayu Pass Wei and Jin dynastiestomb murals were found in tombs located near Xincheng and Paifangliang. There was usually one painting on one brick, about 16-18 cm high and 34-36 cm wide. The subject matters were all from real life, mainly life of the tomb owner, such astraveling, feasting, hunting and soldiers’ reclamation which related to farming, pasturing, forestry, cooking, butchering and message sending.

The murals were simple and clear. Ink lines used to sketch figures and images were smooth and motional. The color was based on red earth and dotted with some warm colors such as ochre, vermeil and rock yellow. The whole painting was profuse and inviting. Lou Rui tomb mural was found in Wangguo village, Jinci, Taiyuan in Shanxi province. It was dated from Northern Qi dynasty. The mural depicted the luxurious life of Lou Rui, Prince of Dong’ an, before he died. Lou Rui was the son of Lou Zhuang, elder brother of Empress dowager Lou who was the wife of Gao Huan, the first emperor of Northern Qi dynasty.

The pictures that depicted his going out and back are the most splendid ones. The cavalcade, the tomb owner’s appearance, facial expressions and manners and the arrangement of various other figures made the whole mural really magnificent. The figures depicted were vigorous and dignified; the scenes were vivid life; sketch lines were clear and with strength; the colors wer stained in hazing ways; and there was solid effect of sunken and protruding, which were learned from foreign painting skills.