A lineage beyond the river

New page for Jiangnan

Jiangnan, or "south of the river", refers to the region along the southern bank of the lower Yangtze River. Local nobles and gentry were receptive to their northern counterparts, and together they shaped an era celebrated for its refined arts and intellectual culture.

Wang Xizhi, for example, came from an eminent family in today's Shandong province and moved south to present-day Zhejiang as a child. His uncles wielded considerable influence in court politics, while he left an enduring legacy in art. His masterpiece, Lanting Xu, or Preface to the Orchid Pavilion, remains a landmark in the history of Chinese calligraphy and literature.

Cultural relics unearthed at the Xiyanchi site in Shandong, his birthplace, are also on display. They offer tangible reminders of the emotional ties northern migrants maintained with the homes they had left behind.

Meanwhile, Gu Kaizhi, a master of painting from a prominent Jiangnan family, helped usher in a celebrated era of figure painting, leaving works revered today, including The Admonitions Scroll, housed at the British Museum.

Artifacts on display help visitors trace an age marked by literati refinement and introspection: celadon vessels, bricks decorated with auspicious animals, a bronze beast-shaped water dropper for an inkstone and other objects that eschew flamboyance.

Together, they convey the understated elegance of the Eastern Jin, an aesthetic echoed by bamboo decorations swaying through the gallery.

"When we look back at people's lives during that period, we can see that many were at a loss," Zhu says. "But they emerged from that confusion with open arms and a determination to rebuild. The exhibition allows visitors to view their history and way of life through a modern lens."

Perhaps some people even lived lives ahead of their time.