The Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival depicts the time.

The whole picture of Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival can be divided into three sections. When the picture unfolds, the first thing you see is the scenery on the outskirts of Bianjing. The middle section mainly depicts the busy scenes on both sides of Shangtu Bridge and Bianhe River. The second half depicts the street view of Bianjing City.

The first paragraph, Bianjing rural spring:

In the mist of the sparse forest, there are several huts, grass bridges, running water, old trees, boats and two porters driving five donkeys carrying charcoal to the city. A willow forest, with faint green branches, makes people feel that although it is chilly in spring, it is already spring back to the earth. In the sedan chair on the road, a woman sat in it. The top of the sedan chair is decorated with willows and flowers, followed by riders and bearers, returning from a walk in the suburbs of Beijing to sweep the grave. The description of the environment and characters points out the specific time and customs of Tomb-Sweeping Day, which opens the curtain for the whole painting.

In the middle section, the busy Bianhe Wharf:

Bianhe River is a national water transportation hub in the Northern Song Dynasty and a place for business exchanges.

[Busy Bianhe Wharf]

Busy Bianhe Wharf

Crossing the main road, we can see from the picture that the population is dense, food ships are gathering, some people are resting in the teahouse, some people are telling fortune, and some people are eating in the restaurant. There is also the "Wang's Paper Horse Shop", which is a grave sweeper selling sacrifices. Ships in the river come and go, end to end, either pulled by trackers or paddled by boatmen. Some are full of goods, going upstream, and some are nervously berthing to unload. Across the Bianhe River is a large wooden arch bridge with exquisite structure and beautiful shape. Such as flying rainbow, hence the name Hongqiao. There is a big ship waiting to cross the bridge. The boatman is supported by bamboo poles; Hook the bridge with a long pole; Lead the boat with hemp rope; Several people are busy lowering the mast so that the ship can pass. People in the neighboring ship are also pointing, as if shouting something. Both inside and outside the ship are busy crossing the bridge for this ship. People on the bridge are also sweating over the tense ferry scene. This is the well-known Hongqiao pier, which is full of traffic and bustling, and is really the intersection of land and water transportation.

In the second half, busy city streets:

Centered on the tower, on both sides.

[Busy downtown street]

Busy downtown streets

There are many houses, including teahouses, restaurants, foot shops, meat shops, temples and public halls. Silk, jewelry, spices, incense, paper horses and so on all have specialized businesses. In addition, there are medical clinics, car repair, fortune telling, shaving and plastic surgery, and all walks of life have everything. Large-scale shops are also tied up with "colorful buildings and happy doors", and banners are hung to attract business, and pedestrians in the market are jostling with each other. There are businessmen who do business and people who look at street scenes. There are monks walking around with baskets on their backs, tourists asking for directions from other places, street children who have heard of books, children of rich people who drink heavily in restaurants, disabled elderly people begging on the edge of cities, men, women and children, scholars, farmers, workers and businessmen, and so on. Means of transportation: sedan chair, camel, ox cart, rickshaw, flatbed, flatbed, all kinds of things. Vividly displayed in front of people.

In a total of more than five meters long picture scroll, * * * painted more than 550 people of various colors, including fifty or sixty cattle, horses, mules, donkeys and other livestock, more than 20 cars and bridges, and more than 20 ships of different sizes. Houses, bridges, towers, etc. They also have their own characteristics, reflecting the characteristics of architecture in the Song Dynasty. The Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival by Zhang Zeduan is a realistic genre painting depicting a corner of Bianjing in the Northern Song Dynasty, which has high historical value and artistic level.