Set of six antique ceremonial ritual paintings superbly drawn Kin Mun Yao on thick stiff paper. Two Wisemen and Four Horsemen.

According to Yao scholar and expert Jf Marc Des Jardins, these six paintings are definitely Yao. As for their date of origin, Professor Des Jardins says they were made in either 1798; 1808; or 1818.

Image descriptions:
(Man with Blue robe): This painting looks like one of the Lord of the Soil (tudigong) or the Lord of Plenty (caishen). The writing seem to say something like: “The believer Zhao Yaoyi (alt. Yaoyun) delight in cultivating meritorious deeds to which he is committed.”

(Inscription): This inscription hints at the possible date of this scroll . However, it is incomplete. There is a last character missing which would give us the date. First, the Period is that of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), the Jiaqing Period (1796-1820), the years where one of the sexagesimal year begins with wu 戊。This gives us three possibilities: wuwu (戊午) 1798; wuchen (戊辰) 1808; or wuyin (戊寅) that is 1818. The last character is presumably hidden under the paper glued on top of it. The paper and the ink would need careful examination in order to know whether both can be dated to the same period or not.

(Man with bird): This looks like the governor one of the four governors of the elements or one of the four marshals of the thunder deity. The flag has the character “decree” stipulating that it is a messager deity and he holds what seems to be a thunder block. This one might be the messenger or an official of the sky carrying orders.

(Man with tiger): This is a marshal or official of the underground. He is carrying the sword and the thunder block or seal of office.

(Man with horse): This one is an official of the Court of our World with his official attributes.

(Man with dragon): This is a Marshall or official of the Water.

(Man in red robe): This one looks like Siming, the director of destiny.