宋（960—1279）
绢本 设色
纵28.5厘米 横28.6厘米
    金明池坐落在北宋东京汴梁顺天门外（今河南开封城西），是当时著名的御苑之一。每年三月由皇帝赐令开放，并与士庶于此共观龙舟争标，郊游赏玩，成为京城一大盛事。靖康之变后，赵宋王朝南渡，“争标赐宴”则成为历史的陈迹，不复存在。因此传世近千年的北宋著名画家张择端所作《金明池争标图》成为我们领略当日繁华胜境的最直观方法。
  张择端，字正道，东武（今山东诸城）人，宋徽宗时画院待诏。工于界画，尤其擅长作舟船、市桥、城郭，所绘《清明上河图》可谓中国最著名的绘画作品，家喻户晓。此幅《金明池争标图》是其另一传世佳作。北宋张择端《金明池争标图》页，收藏于天津博物馆，纵28.5厘米、横28.6厘米，工笔设色绘于绢本之上。
  本图作者在不足一尺见方的绢本上将周围约九里三十步的金明池及岸边的景物、人物悉数生动摹画下来，且画面呈现出开阔、疏朗的布局。由画面下部“池门”入园，以界画手法分别细致描绘了“临水殿”、“宝津楼”、“棂星门”、“仙桥”、“五殿”、“奥屋”等主要建筑物。表现主题的龙舟竞标场景以一艘大型龙舟为中心，其两侧各有五艘小龙舟，每船头各立军校一名，舞旗招引，舟中桨手则奋力划棹，向前方标杆冲去。画面中各龙舟左突右进的空间安排，营造出争标的激烈、刺激与紧张气氛。“仙桥”右下方的“水傀儡”、“水秋千”、“乐船”的描绘则将宋代的水上百戏表演呈现在观者面前。“临水殿”中皇帝赐宴群臣，共赏争标；池岸上百姓或观龙舟，或春游赏玩，或买卖交易……众多人物汇聚图上，虽微小如蚁，但仔细观察，人物比例恰当，姿态各异，神情生动，颇具艺术魅力。
  画中描绘的景物、活动与宋孟元老所撰《东京梦华录》中《三月一日开金明池琼林苑》、《驾幸临水殿观争标赐宴》记载基本吻合，因此又具有较高的历史文献价值。
Competition on the Jinming Pool
Zhang Zeduan
Song dynasty(960-1279)
Album leaf,ink and colour on silk
Height 28.5cm, Width 28.6cm

This album leaf depicts the scene of a competition (a dragon boat race) on the Jinming pool in the Northern Song capital of Bianliang (modern day Kaifeng in Henan Province). The Jinming pool was one of the four gardens of the Northern Song. There are detailed accounts of dragon boat races in the Official History of the Song dynasty (song shi)and the Record of the Glorious Dream of the Eastern Capital(dongjing menghua lu). The correspondence between accounts in these texts and the depiction of the scene in this painting strengthens the evidential value of both. This rigorously orderly architectural painting(jie hua) uses meticulous brushwork. The minute ant-like figures are depicted in a remarkably animated fashion, each in different, clearly discernible attitudes. This album leaf is an important historical source for research on the customs and architecture of the period, with substantial historical value and artistic merit. It is inscribed “Presented by Zhang Zeduan”. This piece was previously owned by Ming dynasty collectors An Guo and Xiang Yuanbian.

While the dates of Zhang Zeduan’s birth and death are not clear, it is known that he lived in the late Northern Song dynasty. His style name was Zhang Dao, and he was a native of Dongwu(modern day Zhucheng city in Shandong Province). Zhang had developed an outstanding personal style for the depiction of boats, carts, bridges and walls in architectural painting. His exemplary work Along the River During the Qinming Festival is currently in the collection of the Beijing Palace Museum.