Mention and depictions of qin by Wang Tingna

Wang Tingna, from a wealthy merchant family in Anhui, studied the classics and became a noted literatus in the Ming's southern capital, Nanjing. He also attained the position of Salt Distribution Commissioner, which tended to be very lucrative. In Nanjing and at his noted garden in Xiuning county, near Huangshan in Anhui province, he liked to host parties involving famous artists and writers.³ He was admired as a poet, opera lyricist and writer of qin songs.⁴ And he also published illustrated books with images such as the one at right. Several of these featured qin (shown here in its bag hanging vertically from the pole).⁵

As yet I have not had the occasion to study such books or his writings for further guqin images or qin songs, not to mention opera lyrics.

Footnotes (Shorthand references are explained on a separate page)

1. 汪廷訥 Wang Tingna (1573-1619)
17533.101: 明，休寧人字昌朝（昌期），又字無如，號坐隱官至鹽運使。毫詩賦，詞曲，工樂府。居所曰環翠堂，酒宴琴歌，與湯顯祖等交遊。著有環翠堂集....

環翠堂 Huan Cui Tang (Hall Encircled by Jade) was the name of his home in Xiuning; his famous garden was located there.

湯顯祖 Tang Xianzu, the person mentioned as one of the sorts of people he would hang out with, was a noted playwright (Wiki); Tang is mentioned here further in connection with Lü Dongbin).

Further unexplored materials include:

人鏡陽秋 1599 (a number of images)
環翠堂樂府投桃記
三祝記

Incomplete
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2. Image: A servant carrying a qin with other household goods
From 人鏡陽秋 1599; the qin is in a qinbag hanging vertically from the pole
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3. Famous acquaintances
At this time the Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci spent time in Nanjing. Perhaps it was through such events that Ricci got to know some of the important figures mentioned here.
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4. Qin Songs
This is mentioned in his dictionary entry above, but of this I have no details as yet.
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5. Illustrations of guqin
Perhaps the best known book is one of illustrations from his garden. A number of webpages have further information about this. For example,

Again: not yet studied in detail.
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