Reconsidering Stein Painting 14 of the Jinshan Kingdom in tenth-century Dunhuang

Stein painting 14 (Ch.liv.006) stands out among paintings that survive from the so-called ‘Library Cave’ of Dunhuang 敦煌 due to the multiple inscriptions on its front and back, as well as the depiction of two figures next to AvalokiteÅ›vara that are described as posthumous portraits in the inscriptions. The painting is also notable for being dating to the tenth year of the Tianfu 天復 reign era (910), which is a Tang å” dynasty (618–907) reign title. In the past, this has been interpreted as an indication of the isolation of Dunhuang from China proper in that it was unaware of the news of the collapse of the Tang dynasty in 907. This chapter reconsiders both the painting’s composition and its inscriptions to further understand the connection between the figures as well as the memorial function of the painting. It challenges the interpretation that the painting represents the isolation of Dunhuang and instead reconsiders the image as an expression of regional identity in the context of the short-lived Jinshan 金山 kingdom in tenth-century Dunhuang.