Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River

Description

Inscription: … I could only petition the rippling waters to convey my message. In hopes that the sincerity of my feelings had already reached her, I untied a piece of jade from my garment as a sign of invitation … Sixth month of 1847, painted and inscribed by Fei Danxu [a.k.a.] Xiaolou
Two seals of the artist
Fei Danxu, a famous professional painter, is best known for his skill in portraiture and figure painting, and was especially adept at depicting the alluring, delicate facial features of women. Here his subject is the legendary goddess of the Luo River, a theme based on a well-known poem (fu) by Cao Zhi (192–232), which is inscribed on the upper part of this painting. Despite the attractiveness of the scroll, the existence of four nearly identical scrolls raises questions regarding the authenticity of the work. Because of its identification as a photographic reproduction, this scroll is a valuable resource for teaching connoisseurship.