China and the Met recreate ancient mural to reveal errors
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Zhang Jian, director of the Meticulous Painting Institute at the Chinese National Academy of Arts, led a team to New York City to meticulously copy a 50-foot mural held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The mural originally decorated the Guangsheng Temple in central China, but was sold by monks in the 14th century to fund repairs to their temple. The Met acquired the mural in 1965 through a donation.
Zhang’s team spent three years reproducing the mural, replicating every detail including cracks and past conservation work. This project became possible through a partnership between the Chinese National Academy of Arts and the Met, representing a high level of collaboration between Chinese and American cultural institutions. The team used materials sourced near the original temple in China, like clay and rice straw, to recreate the mural on tiles.
During their work, the Chinese artists discovered that the Met’s conservators had incorrectly positioned segments of the mural, leaving the head of Buddha slightly misaligned. Museum staff confirmed the error and acknowledged it had gone unnoticed for years. The completed replica debuted at the China National Arts and Crafts Museum in Beijing and was displayed during a visit by President Xi Jinping.
The China National Arts Fund plans to extend this collaborative approach to other Chinese murals held in American museums, including those in Cincinnati and Missouri, to study their condition and potentially create additional replicas. The Met and the Chinese National Academy of Arts will co-host an international symposium in Beijing to discuss Chinese murals.
