A view of Yunhe lansheng tu. [Photo/WeChat account: yzs_lyj]
One of the must-see art works in the Yangzhou Museum is the Yunhe lansheng tu.
Yunhe lansheng tu was created by Wang Su (1794-1877), a painter from Yangzhou in the Qing Dynasty (1636-1912). The art work is widely regarded as a municipal treasure.
The hand scroll painting, which measures 174 centimeters long and 94 centimeters wide, provides a glimpse into the economic activities that took place along the Grand Canal, and features daily scenes of Shaobo town, Jiangdu district, Yangzhou in East China's Jiangsu province in the Qing Dynasty. The painting is also considered an important historical reference material for the study of the city.
The museum had in 2009 bought the painting from a Chinese collector who lived in Great Britain for 300,000 yuan ($44,790).
The painting comprises two parts: business scenes on the canal and prosperous city streets. More than 30 merchant ships and boats and over 300 people in different clothes, expressions and postures are shown in the painting.
The painting is dubbed Yangzhou's Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival due to their similarities. Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival, a well-known painting created by Zhang Zeduan who is a famous Chinese artist in the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), depicts the daily lives of people in the capital city of Bianjing (today's Kaifeng, Henan Province) during the Qingming Festival in the Northern Song Dynasty.
Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival has often be dubbed "China's Mona Lisa".
Visitors are required to present their identity cards, personal health and travel codes, and undergo temperature checks at the entrance.
Visitors must also don masks, maintain social distancing of at least one meter and avoid gathering in large groups once inside the premises.
Address: 468 West Wenchang Road, Hanjiang District, Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province
Hours: 9:00 am-5:00 pm (no entry after 4:00 pm)
Closed on Mondays and the last three days of every Chinese lunar year (except for national holidays)
General admission: Free