Di Qing Finds a Wife 狄青招親

Here’s a print by the Dai Lianzeng studios (戴廉增) of Yangliuqing featuring a scene from the life of Di Qing (1008–1057), a fierce Song dynasty general who defended China against incursions from the Western Xia kingdom. Over the centuries Di Qing’s exploits became the stuff of folktales and operas, gathered together in the early nineteenth century as Romance of Di Qing (狄青演義), a trilogy of novels by the otherwise obscure writer Li Yutang. Romance’s cast included characters from other heroic cycles, such as Generals of the Yang Family and legends surrounding Di Qing’s contemporary, the famous magistrate Bao Zheng (999–1062).

Printed outline with overpainting beautifully done. Print about 130cm wide; blocks this large were made from several planks joined together at the back

In Romance Di Qing is one of a band of righteous warrior brothers known as the “Five Tigers”. During a quest to recover sacred treasures all five are captured by Princess Shuangyang (䨇陽公主), a Taoist warrior-magician trained by the goddess Lishan Laomu. Princess Shuangyang falls in love with the handsome Di Qing and marries him; the two then join forces to complete his mission.

Titled 狄青招親, Di Qing Finds a Wife, the print shows fellow Tiger Liu Qing (劉慶) at left waving a dragon-pearl flag, Di Qing and Princess Shuangyang facing off with spear and halberd, and the Yang family general Yang Zongbao (楊宗保) as a magistrate behind his desk. Pricess Shuangyang’s unnamed warrior attendants look on from the right.

“Di Qing: Five Tigers Conquer the Southwest”. Continuation of the Di Qing saga by an unknown author, published at Shanghai in 1931

One of Yangliuqing’s oldest recorded print workshops, Dai Lianzeng reached their peak in the 1890s and had closed by 1930. This is a modern print made I’d guess during the 1980s or 1990s, but based on a nineteenth-century design and possibly even using the original blocks. In common with most of Yangliuqing’s studios, only a monochrome outline was printed, with the colours painted on by hand.