博
Artist: Unknown
Date: Qing (1644-1911)
Material: Ink and color on paper
During the Three Kingdoms period, Lu Xun, a prominent general of the Eastern Wu, became the Marquis of Huating, marking the beginning of the Lu family's settlement in Huating (in present-day Shanghai). By the Western Jin dynasty, his grandsons Lu Ji and Lu Yun, both raised there, were known as the "Two Lus". Lu Ji, a man of exceptional literary talent, lamented "Hear the cries of cranes in Huating" (Lu Ji lamented that he could never hear the cries of cranes in Huating again before he was wrongly killed. This phrase later became an idiom expressing the longing to live). Lu Yun, refined and erudite, styled himself "Lu Shilong from Yunjian", which relates to Shanghai's ancient name "Yunjian". The Lu family played a pivotal role in the cultural development of Shanghai and remains an important part of the city's cultural memory. As a powerful Eastern Wu family, they cultivated excellent military and civil officials generation after generation. This work is selected from the Qing album Portraits of Eminent Figures from Yunjian, which depicts the "Two Lus" in their respective roles — one as a scholar, the other as a warrior.
