Six Horses - Unidentified Artist

Unidentified artists

Ink and color on silk

Metropolitan Museum of Art

This serene handscroll painting captures grooms in fur-lined robes tending to a group of horses beneath a gnarled, wintry tree, evoking the courtly tradition of Chinese horse-and-rider paintings favored by nomadic and imperial patrons alike. Rendered in delicate ink and color on silk, the composition balances naturalistic animal musculature with the calligraphic brushwork characteristic of classical Chinese landscape art. Collector's seals stamped across the upper right corner reveal centuries of connoisseurship, marking this work as a treasured object passed through imperial and private collections. Its quiet, dignified mood and masterful rendering of horses make it a timeless choice for anyone drawn to East Asian art and equestrian subjects.