Note: This is a painting produced in the last fifty years by an artist who is presumably still alive. I do not have copyright in any way over this artist’s work. I’m reproducing it here because (a) these images are of ethnographic interest, (b) I’d hope that shining more light on contemporary mural and scroll painters will ultimately be good for their trade, and (c) frankly, these people seem unlikely to sue me. To that last point: It’s possible to commission these scrolls very easily in the villages around Wutai County. If you’re interested, email me and I’d be happy to give you the contact information of several painters we met.

Structure Type: Sub-urban temple.

Location: The temple is located on an island in a little lake to the south-east of the county seat. At some point I need to do more research on the history of this beautiful site, but judging from the steles it’s been there since at least the mid-Qing.

Period: 1995.

Artist: The artists names are given as Guo Wei 國維, Guo Yuming 果玉鳴, and Yang Ziqin 楊自琴. According to the caretakers when I visit, these three were elderly painters who had trained in traditional styles before the Cultural Revolution, and who had since passed away. Given the beauty of the murals, I am inclined to believe this.

Mural Contents: The murals in the main hall show the procession of the Dragon Kings 龍王 out and back from the Crystal Palace 水晶宮, where the Mother of Waters 水母 awaits them. This makes it clear that the “Water God” in question should be understood as the ubiquitous “Mother of Waters” 水母 / “Mother of Dragons” 龍母 / “Holy Mother of the Dragon Palace” 龍宮聖母 whose cult is so important in the north.

A side hall has images of the Hundred Trades 百工圖. This is an interesting local theme found in Yu County 蔚縣 and Guangling County 廣靈縣, often in halls to the God of Wealth 財神. The little panels show workers performing all of the many possible trades of late-imperial China, including peddlers, painters, cobblers, carpenters, etc. etc. Several of these are extant in neighboring Yu County, all from the late Qing.

Other Notes: These murals are a rare example of murals in competent, traditional styles, painted after the Cultural Revolution and east of the Yellow River. Naturally, I took terrible photos and then my camera died due to cold. I attempted to return to the site later to take more photos, but it was under renovation and I was unable to enter.

Full Gallery