# Paintings after Ancient Masters: Chrysanthemum

- By: Chen Hongshou (Chinese, 1598/99–1652)
- Date: 1598–1652
- Medium: Album leaf; ink and color on silk
- Classification: Painting
- Dimensions: Overall: 30.2 x 26.7 cm (11 7/8 x 10 1/2 in.)
- Culture: China, Ming dynasty (1368–1644)
- Credit line: John L. Severance Fund
- Museum: [Cleveland Museum of Art](https://clevelandart.org/art/1979.27.2.17)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1979.27.2.17/1979.27.2.17_web.jpg
- Who can see it: Little Ones profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

Poet Tao Yuanming (365–427 CE) turned down a career as an official in politically turbulent times to return to his home estate, northwest of Mount Lu, to write poetry and enjoy his garden and wine. As he grew chrysanthemums, Tao is associated with this flower.

The artist Chen Hongshou, active in Zhejiang province, suffered through the violent transition from the Ming to the Qing dynasty around 1644. This painting of chrysanthemums alludes to the poet who lived a millennium earlier during similarly fraught times.