Textile with animals and woven inscription

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

On this colorful textile, several lively creatures climbing cloudlike mountains are interspersed with Chinese characters that form an incomplete auspicious inscription. The pattern of animals and clouds was popular on Chinese silks from the Han to the Jin dynasty (ca. 1st–3rd century). Textiles with such patterns have been found at archaeological sites all over China, including in the far west, and were often referred to in contemporary documents by complete or partial inscriptions. The inscription on this work includes the characters for ming guang (brightness), which is thought to denote the Ming Guang Palace, built for Emperor Wudi of the Han dynasty. The inscription honors the lord of the palace.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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.

Metropolitan Museum of Art