Yongzheng imitating a poet composing poems on a wall

Having royal court painters to depict himself in specific activities and particular settings, Yongzheng was pleased with such portrait paintings. No other Chinese emperors could be well matched with him,considering the variety and novelty of Xingle Tu.

Yongzheng imitating an unruly officer teasing a monkey

With delicate nuances in colors, tones, and textures, Xingle Tu successfully integrated diversified styles of portrait paintings and landscape paintings. Painted in a realistic style with neat outlines, those paintings show great artistry and vividly mirror the royal life, trends and aesthetic appreciation of the Qing Dynasty.

Yongzheng imitating a recluse sitting in a boat

Exuberant and peculiar clothes are the highlight in Xingle Tu. Yongzheng was indulged in all sorts of costume portraits which portrayed him as a Buddhist monk looking down a stream; a Taoist in search of the elixir; a scholar playing a zither; a poet writing poems on a wall; an unruly officer teasing a monkey; a recluse sitting in a boat; a landowner watching an account book, and even a western hunter wearing a wig, of all which is rare in the annals of Chinese history.