A very large painting of huntsmen and Tanzi


Late Qing DynastyInk and colour on silk, depicting in the foreground a procession of soldiers carrying flags, muskets and spears as well as dogs and commanders on horseback returning from a hunting trip to a Palace complex, across the river on the top right hunters pursue deer, two huntsmen pause at Tanzi hiding beneath a deerskin, while another battles two tigers with his hands, all within a landscape with mountains and trees. 648cm (255in) wide x 324.5cm (128in) high. (2).
|清末 鹿乳奉親圖 設色絹本The scene shows a hunting party discovering that their quarry is not quite what they thought. The cowering boy clad in a deerskin and carrying a pail of milk is Tanzi, the seventh member of the Twenty-Four Paragons of Filial Piety (a group of historical children who went above and beyond in respect and loyalty to their parents). Tanzi's father and mother both suffered from an eye infection that was only soothed with deer's milk. To collect the balm Tanzi disguised himself as a deer and mingled in amongst the local herd. Unfortunately a group of hunters soon appeared and almost killed the boy by mistake, only stopping the chase when he revealed himself.