Tomb of Huang Gongwang

Tomb of Huang Gongwang

The Tomb of Huang Gongwang is a Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Tomb of Huang Gongwang is located on the hillside to the left of the Xiaoshi Cave at the western foot of Yushan Mountain, outside the west gate of Changshu City. Huang Gongwang, originally surnamed Lu and named Jian, was a native of Changshu. He was adopted as a foster son by the Huang family of Yongjia and thus took their surname. His courtesy name was Zijiu, and his art names included Yifeng, Dachi Daoren, and in his later years, Jingsi Daoren. Intelligent from childhood, he passed the child prodigy examination and was well-read and knowledgeable. He once served as a clerk in the Zhongtai Censorate but was later falsely accused and imprisoned. After being released, he never held office again. Initially, he lived in seclusion at Shaoci Spring in Hangzhou and traveled frequently between the regions of Sanwu. Skilled in calligraphy, music, and sanqu poetry, he only began painting at the age of fifty. Inheriting the brushwork techniques of Dong Yuan and Ju Ran, and combining them with natural landscapes, he depicted the scenic beauty of Jiangshan Fishing Terrace while residing in Fuchun, and painted scenes of Shanghu Lake near Yushan Mountain when living in Changshu. In his later years, he innovated his brushwork, pioneering the "light crimson landscape" style and developing his own unique school. Later hailed as the foremost of the “Four Masters of the Yuan Dynasty,” painters such as Dong Qichang of the Ming Dynasty and Wang Shimin and Wang Jian of the Qing Dynasty were all influenced by his style. His paintings had a profound impact on Chinese art for centuries during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Among his works, “Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains” is the most famous. He authored “Shanshui Ying” and “Collected Works of Yifeng Daoren,” which have been passed down through generations.

The original scope of Huang Gongwang’s Tomb was not large. It was renovated during the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty. In May 1817 (the 22nd year of the Jiaqing reign), his sixteenth-generation descendant Huang Tai repaired the tomb, built a memorial archway, and constructed a surrounding wall (luocheng) and the tomb path. The tomb was restored again in 1982. The spirit way is paved with yellow stones, extending directly from the road to the front of the tomb, about 60 meters in length. The tomb mound is built of bricks, with a diameter of 3.5 meters and a height of 1.4 meters. Within the yellow-stone luocheng is embedded a bluestone stele, 1.3 meters high and 0.36 meters wide, inscribed with nine Chinese characters in regular script: “Tomb of Yuan Dynasty Scholar Huang Yifeng,” erected by Huang Tai during the tomb renovation.

This tomb was designated as a Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit on August 30, 1957.

Huang Gongwang (1269–1354), originally surnamed Lu and named Jian, was a native of Changshu in Pingjiang Prefecture. Orphaned at an early age and with no family support due to poverty, at the age of seven he was adopted by Huang Lao, a native of Pingyang who had relocated to the area, and given this new name, which means “The Grand Duke has long hoped for a son,” along with the courtesy name Zijiu. He was also called Jingjian. In his middle age, he used the art names Yifeng (Yifeng Daoren), Dachi (Dachi Daoren), and Jingshu, and in his later years, he went by Bingsi Daoren. From a young age, he was intelligent and diligent in his studies. As he grew older, he extensively read many books. Zhong Sicheng’s “Register of Ghosts” states: “Huang Gongwang’s learning required no embellishment. There was nothing in the affairs of the world that he did not know; there was no minor skill or art that he could not master...” More detailed information on Huang Gongwang ++

Further Reading:

· First and Second Batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units