【Commentary】After nearly a year of restoration and cleaning work, the only Ming Dynasty heavy mural found in Sichuan has recently revealed its full picture. On May 5, at the restoration site of the mural of the Mingjiao Temple Juehuang Hall in the ancient city of Chengxiang, Qingbaijiang District, Chengdu, restorers were preparing for the next step of the unveiling work of the colorful and delicate Ming Dynasty heavy layer mural.
【During the same period】Li Xiaoyang, the person in charge of the restoration site of the mural of the Mingjiao Temple Juehuang Hall
Now the restorer is doing this process of repairing the pigment layer nailing, in fact, it seems that the pigment layer is very small, but its process is also very complicated. First of all, we have to dust the surface, after removing the dust, we must use the cemented material we have experimentally obtained for infiltration, use something that looks like a needle tube to inject the cemented material, and then paste the pigment layer back, this thing (process) is a very slow process. Like our relatively skilled restorer, his workload in a day may be as small as 20 square centimeters. Therefore, our mural restoration is a relatively meticulous and slow work.
【Explanation】The so-called heavy mural refers to a layer of earlier mural works covered under a layer of mural. In 2021, the Mingjiao Temple Juehuang Hall discovered a Qing Dynasty ink line mural on the back screen of the Buddha statue in the hall. When the restorers uncovered the Qing Dynasty murals, the Ming Dynasty murals under them were gradually revealed.
【During the same period】Li Xiaoyang, the person in charge of the restoration site of the mural of the Mingjiao Temple Juehuang Hall
At present, after we have uncovered (Qing Dynasty murals), we can see that the picture of this (Ming Dynasty) mural is still relatively clear, and the shape is also very large. Like this place in the middle, what can be seen at present is a "thousand hands and thousand eyes" Guanyin, holding a lot of magic weapons in his hand, and there is an eye in each hand. Then secondly, on the right side, you can see something similar to wearing modern clothing, which is the costume of the modern world at that time, like such an effect of a story comic book.
【Commentary】After comparison, the restoration team found that the murals of the two dynasties were completely different in content, style and painting materials. As for why the ancients of the Qing Dynasty covered the intact murals of the Ming Dynasty, it is still inconclusive.
【During the same period】Li Xiaoyang, the person in charge of the restoration site of the mural of the Mingjiao Temple Juehuang Hall
The mural we see at present is the surface layer of the Ming Dynasty mural that we see on the scene now, which is what we call the Qing Dynasty painting (mural). We are also thinking about why this Qing Dynasty person painted such a new layer of mural on the Ming Dynasty mural, it may be a spontaneous act of the people, or it may be because of (official behavior), because this mural was a dragon at that time, it was a dragon pattern, and it was possible to see two dragons on this map, or it could be a worship of dragon culture by people in that period, and then an official act was carried out, or it was possible. So now we are not sure what the specific reason is, but at least it can stay for now, and it is also part of the history of the Juehuang Palace.
At present, the heavy murals of the Ming Dynasty are still in the cleaning stage, and it is planned to uncover them first, and then post them back after the overall building repair is completed.
【During the same period】Li Xiaoyang, the person in charge of the restoration site of the mural of the Mingjiao Temple Juehuang Hall
I hope that the mural we finally present in this hall will not only have the Ming Dynasty murals on the ground floor that we found, but we will also restore the Qing Dynasty murals to other areas in this hall. At least in terms of historical value, I think it is still very valuable to study, because it is, after all, a mural painting of two dynasties. Through murals, it can also be reversed to the extent of history, technology, culture, and art at that time, so it still has a certain contribution value for art and science.
Chen Xuanbin reported from Chengdu
Responsible Editor: [Luo Pan]