3-002-605 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Ten-panel Folding Screen with Scenes of Filial Piety, 18th-19th century. The "Book of Filial Piety" is one of the ethical and moral texts associated with the Chinese sage Confucius (6th-5th century BC). "Truly if one is filial at home," wrote a 10th-century Korean king, "he will certainly be a loyal official for the state." A supplementary text describing twenty-four historical figures who honored their parents or elders in extraordinary ways later became popular in both China and Korea. This screen depicts seven of these twenty-four paragons and three others: