# The Wangchuan Villa

- By: Artist unknown
- Date: Ming or Qing dynasty, 17th–18th century
- Medium: Handscroll; ink, color, and gold on silk
- Classification: Painting
- Culture: China
- Credit line: Gift of Mrs. Chauncey McCormick
- Museum: [Art Institute of Chicago](https://www.artic.edu/artworks/49039)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://www.artic.edu/iiif/2/301d2352-2582-03bc-ab13-d768586b4f15/full/!1920,1080/0/default.jpg
- Who can see it: Teens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

Wangchuan Villa was the retreat of the famous poet Wang Wei (699–759); the site was located on the outskirts of Chang’an (now Xi’an), capital of the Tang dynasty (618–970). Wang Wei converted part of his estate into a Buddhist temple after his mother’s death and painted a panoramic view of the Wang-chuan Villa on its walls. Although the temple was destroyed during the Huichang Persecution of Buddhism (841–45), the original mural has inspired artists for more than a thousand years. This handscroll painting is based on a stone engraving from 1617, the image that became the most widely accepted model for representations of Wangchuan Villa.

Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0