Particularly famous for his skill at depicting horses, Zhao believed that he had the ability to capture animals’ inner essence with his brush. The practice of evaluating steeds like this was elevated to a science in Ancient China when the horse tamer Bole pioneered the field of horse physiognomy, or xiangma. Carefully analyzing an animal’s features, he felt, could disclose key insights not only about its health but about its fundamental nature as well. A passage from The Classic of Horse Physiognomy, a fragmentary text found near the Mawangdui archaeological site, instructs practitioners on what to look for in a fine specimen, down to the minutest of details: the eyes, for instance, should resemble “a moon coming out above . . . and not yet bright.” The frequent comparisons to mountains, rivers, and heavenly phenomena, art historian Robert E. Harrist, Jr. argues, ascribe a cosmological significance to the creatures’ bodies — right proportions were indicative of a correct balance in yin, yang, and other fundamental forces.
