《清明上河圖》（局部） 各色商鋪

Various types of shops depicted in Along the River During the Qingming Festival.

Along the River During the Qingming Festival

Along the River During the Qingming Festival is the only painting masterpiece by Song-dynasty court painter Zhang Zeduan that has been preserved to this day. A long color scroll painting on silk, it depicts the prosperity of Bianliang, capital of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), as well as the lives of people from all walks of life at that time.

The painting consists of three sections which depict suburban landscapes, commercial activities on both sides of the Rainbow Bridge and the views of urban streets, respectively. The 5-meter- long scroll portrays 500-plus figures, more than 20 ships, as well as various vehicles, horses, houses, and bridges.

Upon viewing the painting carefully, one can see camel caravans transporting goods, busy wharves, shops packed with customers, and tall and magnificent city gates.

One of the most eye-catching sights is a cargo ship about to pass under the Rainbow Bridge, on which some boatmen are punting, some are pulling the towrope, and others are busy lowering the mast so that the ship can pass. Pedestrians on the bridge are sticking out their heads to shout at the sailors. The painter vividly portrayed the scenes and figures, composing a well-designed layout.

A realist painting masterpiece, Along the River During the Qingming Festival provides first-hand information on the commerce, handicrafts, folk customs, architecture, and transportation of the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, giving it high historical value. Its rich cultural connotation, unique aesthetic perspective, and realistic expression techniques have made it a classic in the art history of China and even the world.

《清明上河圖》（局部）虹橋

The Rainbow Bridge depicted in Along the River During the Qingming Festival.

《清明上河圖》（局部） 城門和商隊(duì)

The city gate and merchant caravan depicted in Along the River During the Qingming Festival.

《清明上河圖》

《清明上河圖》是北宋宮廷畫家張擇端僅見的傳世精品。絹本設(shè)色長(zhǎng)卷，描繪了北宋都城汴京的繁盛面貌和各階層人民的生活狀態(tài)。

全卷分為城郊風(fēng)景、虹橋兩岸的商貿(mào)活動(dòng)、市區(qū)街道景觀三部分。長(zhǎng)達(dá)5米的畫卷里，繪制了各色人物500余人，船只20余艘，各種車馬、房屋、橋梁等鱗次櫛比，隨處可見。

細(xì)看畫面，可以看到運(yùn)貨的駝隊(duì)、忙碌的碼頭、熱鬧的各色商鋪、宏偉的城門。其中最精彩的一幕是虹橋下一艘貨船正待過(guò)橋，船夫們有的撐船，有的拉纖繩，有的急忙放下桅桿，以便船只通過(guò)。橋上的行人也伸出頭來(lái)，指揮著，吆喝著。作者將景色、人物刻畫得生動(dòng)逼真，畫面布局錯(cuò)落有致。

《清明上河圖》不僅僅是一件偉大的現(xiàn)實(shí)主義繪畫藝術(shù)珍品，同時(shí)也為我們提供了北宋大都市的商業(yè)、手工業(yè)、民俗、建筑、交通工具等翔實(shí)形象的第一手資料，具有重要?dú)v史文獻(xiàn)價(jià)值。其豐富的思想內(nèi)涵、獨(dú)特的審美視角、現(xiàn)實(shí)主義的表現(xiàn)手法，都使其在中國(guó)乃至世界繪畫史上被奉為經(jīng)典之作。