Box with a scholar and chrysanthemums

Box with a scholar and chrysanthemums

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Diminutive figures set in a towering landscape became a traditional motif in Chinese art. Here, a scholar-gentleman supervises two attendants carrying chrysanthemums, a plant whose late autumn bloom was thought to symbolize a gentleman’s lofty character.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Box with a scholar and chrysanthemumsBox with a scholar and chrysanthemumsBox with a scholar and chrysanthemumsBox with a scholar and chrysanthemumsBox with a scholar and chrysanthemums

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.