Hanging scroll of "Portrait of Namjar"

From 1755 to 1759 the Qing forces won three major conquests in the northwestern borderland of China. Two of them dealt the belligerent Dzungars, a West Mongol tribe, a crushing blow. The third was a punitive action against the Muslims, who had tried to regain political independence. As a result, the Yili Valley and the whole of Eastern Turkestan came under Chinese control and was renamed Xinjiang (New Dominion). To celebrate these successes a pictorial record was deemed as necessary as written documentation by the art-loving Qianlong Emperor. Much of that record illustrated battle scenes and singular heroes re-enacting courageous feats. But it also included a set of portraits commemorating one hundred officials who had contributed to the success of the expeditions. Textual evidence and extant works bear witness to three versions, two in hanging scroll format and one in handscroll format, painted over four to five years. This portrait of Namjar formed part of the first version, completed in the spring of 1760. Because it was urgently needed for display in the Hall of Purple Light to coincide with a large banquet honouring the heroes, at least three groups of court painters worked together in its production. One group, under the supervision of a missionary painter versatile in portraiture, painted the faces in European style. The other two groups were responsible for the remainder of the figures and their military equipment. Namjar's portrait was placed fourth in the set. The encomium composed by the Qian-long Emperor reads: 'Namjar, formerly Military Governor in Charge of the Pacification of Rebels; Duke of the Third Rank with the Designation Yilie (Righteous and Ardent); and President of the Board of Works' 'Much worried about the hardship of my worthy [officials], I dispatched a replacement. It was during the Black River [siege]. The rats ran wild. [Leading only] two hundred soldiers, [Namjar and his cavalry] were ensnared by thousands of rebels. He gave his life for his country, This brave and loyal man.' Only seven examples from the first version are known to have survived. The ROM owns two, including this example."