Studying Emperor Kangxi's Changzhou Scroll
	Click to enlarge image During the 2007 academic year, Mr. Ponzio was enrolled in a course entitled "New Perspectives on Early Modern China", at the University of Florida, (see Qing hand scroll lesson).  This course examined the history, culture and economy of Qing Dynasty China primarily by examining a set of scrolls called the Southern Inspection Tour scrolls which the Kangxi and Qianlong Emperors had commissioned.  These scrolls can be viewed at the Columbia University website:"Recording the Grandeur of the Qing".  While researching these documents, Mr. Ponzio came across a reference that one of the scrolls depicted the city of Changzhou, the city of our sister school. As this scroll was not published on the web site, he began investigating where the scroll was being held in the hopes of viewing it and sharing it with our friends in Changzhou.

	Visiting the Phoenix Museum
	Click to enlarge image After writing several letters to various scholars inquiring about the scrolls whereabouts, good news came thanks to Deborah Del Gas, curator of Asian collection at the Museum at the Rhode Island School of Design. Her research indicated that the scroll was located in Phoenix, Arizona as part of the Roy and Marilyn Papp collection of Chinese paintings.   Mr. Ponzio's initial contact with scholar Claudia Brown proved fruitful as she was more than happy to help. Thanks to her generosity, Oak Hall received a great resource of high quality scans of the scroll, as well as numerous scholarly articles related to it. Additionally, a generous invitation to study the scroll in person was extended by the Mr. and Mrs. Papp and the Phoenix Museum staff.  In July, (thanks to a Buddy Pass from his pilot brother in law), Mr. Ponzio flew out to Phoenix to meet the collectors, the scholars and to view the scroll.

	Unrolling the Scroll: The First Glimpse of History
	Click to enlarge image Inside the vaults of the Phoenix Museum, Janet baker unrolls the historic scroll.  After several months of tracking it down, it was very exciting to finally see the scroll in person!  When the Papps acquired the scroll at auction, it was in very bad shape, with water damage, rips and holes across the top from where it had ben pinned up.  They had the scroll shipped to Hong Kong to an expert who meticulously cleaned and remounted the scroll on an exquisite silk backing in the traditional manner.  It was amazing how vibrant the colors of the pigment were.  Metallic pigments were also utilized throughout to emphasize musical instruments and other important objects.

	Studying the Imagery
	Click to enlarge image Above: Mr. Ponzio, along with (from left), Janet Baker and Marilyn Papp discuss the scrolls imagery and historic significance.  This scroll was one of 12 scrolls created by artist Wang Hui at the request of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty.  This particular scroll is meant to document the Emperors Southern Inspection tour of China, in particular his journey along the Grand Canal to visit the important city of Changzhou.  The scroll, created 1691 - 98 AD, is made with ink and mineral pigment on silk, and is estimated to be, (originally), about 40 feet long.  Unfortunately, at some point in history, this scroll was cut into perhaps 3 different sections.  This portion of the scroll is thought to be the finale, as the Grand Canal leads the viewer (from right to left), through the beautiful triple arched bridge towards the gates of the great walled city of Changzhou.  Sadly, the whereabouts of the remaining sections of the scroll are unknown.  Below: Janet Baker closely examines the beautiful detailed imagery of this silk scroll. While Mr. Ponzio was very excited to study the scroll, the resident scholars were equally excited to once again examine it as it has been in storage for nearly 15 years.  Both Claudia Brown and Janet Baker proved extremely informative and generous with their knowledge of Qing Dynasty history and culture, and helped to answer a lot of questions about the imagery, the Emperor and the Southern Inspection Tour.  Click to enlarge image Click to enlarge image From left: Claudia Brown and Jacqueline, a graduate student from Arizona University, help translate some of the classic Chinese written into the image of the scroll by the artist, Wang Hui.  This scroll section depicts a 10 mile stretch of the Grand Canal from Bennieu to Changzhou, and is extremely detailed. Hundreds of people are illustrated as they prepare a celebration to honor the Emperor's impending arrival.  The viewer can see into homes and business to observe minute details of daily life.  This image offers a wealth of information about how the proud people of Changzhou lived during the Qing era.  Artist Wang Hui was considered one of China's greatest painters in his day. It turns out that Wang Hui grew up only 15 miles from Changzhou, in the village of Yushan near Changshu, and was certainly familiar with this section of the Grand Canal.  It is exciting to realize that this image depicts a part of his country that he was intimately familiar with and thought fondly of!  It seems to explain why he dedicated such a large portion of the scroll to such a relatively short distance of the journey... more space than in any other of the 12 other scrolls in the series! Click to enlarge image From left: Roy Papp, Janet Baker, Marilyn Papp, Robert Ponzio and Claudia Brown.   The Oak Hall community wishes to thank Roy and Marilyn Papp, Deborah Del Gas, as well as everyone at the Phoenix Museum who helped bring this historical document to light. Their generosity is greatly appreciated.  With this new information and high quality imagery, Oak Hall students now hope to set about studying the scroll for themselves. A CD of this imagery will be shipped to Changzhou #2 Senior Middle School to inform our friends of this document, which as far as we know, they have never seen.  This year we hope to work together via the internet to learn more about the culture and history of Qing Dynasty China as well as about the history of Changzhou.   We will have many questions for our Chinese friends about the imagery in the scroll, and hope to see if some of the main features depicted in the scroll still exist today, (such as the magnificent triple arched bridge and the massive city walls and gate).   Thanks to the generosity of our new friends in Phoenix, we look forward to a productive and enlightening interaction with our counterparts in Changzhou as we compare life during the Qing with the bustling, modern city of today!