A hanging scroll is one of the many traditional ways to display and exhibit East Asian painting and

calligraphy Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

. The hanging scroll was displayed in a room for appreciation; it is to be distinguished from the

handscroll The handscroll is a long, narrow, horizontal scroll format in East Asia used for calligraphy or paintings. A handscroll usually measures up to several meters in length and around 25–40 cm in height. Handscrolls are generally viewed starting ...

, which was narrower and designed to be viewed flat on a table in sections and then stored away again. Hanging scrolls are generally intended to be displayed for short periods of time and are then rolled up to be tied and secured for storage. The hanging scrolls are rotated according to season or occasion, and such works are never intended to be on permanent display. The painting surface of the paper or silk can be mounted with decorative

brocade Brocade is a class of richly decorative shuttle-woven fabrics, often made in colored silks and sometimes with gold and silver threads. The name, related to the same root as the word "broccoli", comes from Italian ''broccato'' meaning "embos ...

silk borders. In the composition of a hanging scroll, the foreground is usually at the bottom of the scroll while the middle and far distances are at the middle and top respectively. The traditional craft involved in creating a hanging scroll is considered an art in itself. Mountings for Chinese paintings can be divided into a few types, such as handscrolls, hanging scrolls, album leaves, and

screen Screen or Screens may refer to: Arts * Screen printing (also called ''silkscreening''), a method of printing * Big screen, a nickname associated with the motion picture industry * Split screen (filmmaking), a film composition paradigm in which mul ...

s amongst others. In the hanging scroll the actual painting is mounted on paper, and provided at the top with a stave, to which is attached a hanging cord, and at the bottom with a roller.

History

Scrolls originated in their earliest form from literature and other texts written on

bamboo strips Bamboo and wooden slips () were the main media for writing documents in China before the widespread introduction of paper during the first two centuries AD. (Silk was occasionally used, for example in the Chu Silk Manuscript, but was prohibiti ...

and

silk Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the coc ...

banners across ancient China. The earliest hanging scrolls are related to and developed from silk banners in early Chinese history. These banners were long and hung vertically on walls. Such silk banners and hanging scroll paintings were found at

Mawangdui Mawangdui () is an archaeological site located in Changsha, China. The site consists of two saddle-shaped hills and contained the tombs of three people from the Changsha Kingdom during the western Han dynasty (206 BC – 9 AD): the Chancellor Li ...

dating back to the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

(206 BCE – 220 CE). By the time of the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

(618–907), the aesthetic and structural objectives for hanging scrolls were summarized, which are still followed to this day. During the early

Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

(960–1279), the scrolls became well suited to the art styles of the artists, consequently hanging scrolls were made in many different sizes and proportions. Originally introduced to Japan from China as a means of spreading

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

, it has found a place in Japanese culture and art and plays an important role in interior decoration.

Description

The hanging scroll provides an artist with a vertical format to display his art on a wall. It is one of the most common types of scrolls for Chinese

painting Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ...

and

. Horizontal hanging scrolls are also very frequently used and a common form. The hanging scroll is different from the handscroll in that the latter is not hung. The handscroll is a long narrow scroll for displaying a series of scenes in Chinese painting. This scroll is intended to be viewed section for section during the unrolling and flat on a table, which is in contrast to a hanging scroll that is appreciated in its entirety while guiding the eyes through the artwork.

Mounting styles

There are several hanging scroll styles for mounting, such as: * ''Yisebiao'' (一色裱, one color mount) * ''Ersebiao'' (二色裱, two color mount) * ''Sansebiao'' (三色裱, three color mount) * ''Xuanhezhuang'' (宣和裝, Xuanhe style), also known as ''Songshibiao'' (宋式裱,

mount)

Arrangements and formats

Besides the previous styles of hanging scroll mountings, there are a few additional ways to format the hanging scroll. *Hall painting (中堂畫) :Hall paintings are intended to be the centerpiece in the main hall. It's usually quite a large hanging scroll that serves as a focal point in an interior and often has a complicated subject. *Four hanging scrolls (四條屏) :These hanging scrolls were developed from screen paintings. It features several narrow and long hanging scrolls and is usually hung next to each other on a wall, but can also be hung on its own. The subjects have related themes, such as the flowers of the four seasons, the ''

Four Gentlemen In Chinese art, the Four Gentlemen or Four Noble Ones (), literally meaning "Four Junzi", is a collective term referring to four plants: the plum blossom, the orchid, the bamboo, and the chrysanthemum. The term compares the four plants to Confuc ...

'' (

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, bu ...

chrysanthemum Chrysanthemums (), sometimes called mums or chrysanths, are flowering plants of the genus ''Chrysanthemum'' in the family Asteraceae. They are native to East Asia and northeastern Europe. Most species originate from East Asia and the center ...

plum blossom ''Prunus mume'' is an East Asian and Southeast Asian tree species classified in the ''Armeniaca'' section of the genus ''Prunus'' subgenus ''Prunus''. Its common names include Chinese plum, Japanese plum, and Japanese apricot. The flower, long ...

), the ''

Four Beauties The Four Beauties or Four Great Beauties are four Chinese women who were renowned for their beauty. The four are usually identified as Xi Shi, Wang Zhaojun, Diaochan, and Yang Guifei. The scarcity of historical records concerning them meant that ...

'' (ladies renowned for their beauty). *Panoramic screen (通景屏) :The panoramic screen consists of several hanging scrolls that have continuous images, in which the subject continues further in another scroll. These hanging scrolls cover large areas of a wall and usually do not have a border in between. *Couplet (對聯) :A

couplet A couplet is a pair of successive lines of metre in poetry. A couplet usually consists of two successive lines that rhyme and have the same metre. A couplet may be formal (closed) or run-on (open). In a formal (or closed) couplet, each of the ...

is two hanging scrolls placed side by side or accompanying a scroll in the middle. These are with poetic calligraphy in

vertical writing Many East Asian scripts can be written horizontally or vertically. Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese Hán- Nôm and Korean scripts can be oriented along either axis, as they consist mainly of disconnected logographic or syllabic units, each occu ...

. This style came to popularity during the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

(1368–1644). *Thin strip painting (條幅畫) :Narrow strip paintings intended for smaller rooms and spaces.

Features and materials

Chinese mounting and conservation techniques are considered a traditional craft and are believed to have developed around 2,000 years ago. This craft is considered an art onto itself. Careful attention was and still is paid to ensure the quality and variety of the silk and paper to protect and properly fit the artwork onto the mounting, as it gives form to the art. The art is fixed onto a four-sided inlay, made from paper or silk, thus providing a border. The artwork in the middle of the scroll is called ''huaxin'' (畫心; literally "painted heart"). There is sometimes a section above the artwork called a ''shitang'' (詩塘; literally "poetic pool"), which is usually reserved for inscriptions onto the work of art, ranging from a short verse to poems and other inscriptions. These inscriptions are often done by people other than the artist. Although inscriptions can also be placed onto the material of the artwork itself. The upper part of the scroll is called ''tiantou'' (天頭; symbolizing "Heaven") and the lower part is called ''ditou'' (地頭; symbolizing "Earth"). At the top of the scroll is a thin wooden bar, called ''tiangan'' (天杆), on which a cord is attached for hanging the scroll. Two decorative strips, called ''jingyan'' (惊燕; literally "frighten swallows"), are sometimes attached to the top of the scroll. At the bottom of the scroll is a wooden cylindrical bar, called ''digan'' (地杆), attached to give the scroll the necessary weight to hang properly onto a wall, but it also serves to roll up a scroll for storage when the artwork is not in display. The two knobs at the far ends of the lower wooden bar are called ''zhoutou'' (軸頭) and help to ease the rolling of the scroll. These could be ornamented with a variety of materials, such as jade, ivory, or horn.

Method and processes

Traditional scroll mounters go through a lengthy process of backing the mounting silks with paper using paste before creating the borders for the scroll. Afterwards, the whole scroll is backed before the roller and fittings are attached. The whole process can take two weeks to nine months depending on how long the scroll is left on the wall to dry and stretch before finishing by polishing the back with

Chinese wax Chinese wax is a white to yellowish-white, gelatinous, crystalline water-insoluble substance obtained from the wax secreted by certain insects. It resembles spermaceti but is harder, more friable, and with a higher melting point. Two scale insects ...

and fitting the rod and roller at either end. This process is generally called 'wet mounting' due to the use of wet paste in the process. In the late 20th century a new method was created called 'dry mounting' which involves the use of heat activated

silicone A silicone or polysiloxane is a polymer made up of siloxane (−R2Si−O−SiR2−, where R = organic group). They are typically colorless oils or rubber-like substances. Silicones are used in sealants, adhesives, lubricants, medicine, cooking ...

sheets in lieu of paste which reduced the amount of time from a few weeks to just a few hours. This new method is generally used for mass-produced artwork rather than serious art or conservation as mounting done this way tends not to be as robust as wet mounting whose scrolls can last for over a century before it requires remounting.

References

External links

MoreInfo: Formats (Mounting)
National Palace Museum. (for a diagram of the components of a hanging scroll)
Short documentary about how a japanese hanging scroll is being made
{{Authority control Arts in China Chinese art Chinese inventions Chinese painting East Asian art East Asian calligraphy