Album Leaf from The Grand Wedding of the Guangxu Emperor (Guangxu dahun tu)

The grand wedding of the Guangxu Emperor (r. 1875–1908) was held near the end of the Qing dynasty (1644–1911). Due to the artistic efforts of the Imperial Household Department’s vice-director Qingkuan (surname Zhao, 1848–1927) and other painters, the opulence of the wedding ceremonies was realistically depicted in the album The Grand Wedding of the Guangxu Emperor (Guangxu dahun tu), in which the nuptials held in the outer court are shown with brilliant colors in vivid detail. This album comprises a wealth of resources for research into the imperial wedding ceremonies of the Qing dynasty. The paintings afford an unrivaled view of the Forbidden City’s primary architecture as decorated with lanterns and other ornamentation for the Guangxu Emperor’s wedding.
This album leaf depicts one scene from the ceremonial procedures known as "escorting the bride to the bridal chamber" (feng ying), when the Phoenix Palanquin arrived at the Gate of Heavenly Purity, the principal and assistant envoys had completed their mission and, along with the grand minister of the Imperial Household Department and the Imperial Guardsmen, withdrew from the ceremony. The empress was then taken on her Phoenix Palanquin to the nuptial chamber.