ku k'ai-chih's scroll in the british museum 103 



Translation. 

 [The numbers refer to the Notes which follow.] 



Ku K'ai-chih of the Chin dynasty excelled in painting. 

 He himself used the phrase "the interpretation of feeling 

 really lies in this" . (1 > from which we know that one who 

 has not entered into the mysteries could not attain unto such 

 ability. This scroll "the Admonitions of an Imperial Pre- 

 ceptress" (2) , has been handed down for more than ten 

 centuries yet its feeling and coloring (3 > are still fresh, and 

 its expression is full of life. It could not have been equalled 

 by the strenuous efforts of a later artist. In his colophon on 

 the picture "The Hsiao and* Hsiang, by Li Po-shih, Tung 

 Hsiang-kuan says that Secretary Ku <- 4) had in his collection 

 four famous scrolls of which this is the very best. I quite 

 believe this. This picture was previously in the Imperial 

 collection, and later then were obtained these pictures by 

 Li viz: "A Eiver in Shu," "The Nine Songs," and "The 

 Hsiao and* Hsiang." Thus the number tallies with that of 

 the famous scrolls mentioned by Tung in his colophon. As 

 they were transfered into the Ching-I Pavilion of the 

 Chien-Fu Palace I wrote an honorary inscription (5 > referring 

 to these scrolls as "The Four Beautiful Objects" | (6) thus 

 recording my profound delight in them. The collection of 

 treasures of remote antiquity in one place without any 

 effortj is beyond the bounds of expectation. I have re- 

 corded these few superficial words so that also I might 

 felicitate this scroll as "the united swords." (7 > 



An Imperial inscription written in the Ching-I Pavilion 

 five days before the summer solstice of the ping-yin year 

 of Ch'ien Lung. 



Notes on the Translation. 



1. The passage quoted from the biography of Ku K'ai- 

 chih in the Chin Shu ( H H ) and occuring also in the Shih 

 Shuo ( 1£ Bfc ) is as follows : 



*The and is not required. — Ed. 



fThe point of J| is important and it is not indicated by Dr. 

 Ferguson. The finding of the four things together in one spot is the 

 point emphasized. — Ed. 



X Without any effort, better, unexpectedly, or fortunately. It is 

 well known that the emperor did make great effort to get the 

 pictures. — Ed. 



