What does the great Confucius look like? Some 2500 years after his death, it is hard to imagine, but not impossible. The sculpture of the first draft of the standard portrait of Confucius will be open to the public on Shandong International Culture Industry Fair (SDICIF), giving modern people a glimpse of him-- an amiable, mild-mannered elder with wisdom and thought.

The sculpture of the first draft of the standard portrait of Confucius. [dzwww.com]

The final version of the standard portrait is to be unveiled this September at the sacrifice ceremony of the 2557th birthday of Confucius.

As one of the campaigns to promote the Confucius culture and the local culture industry, the Organizing Committee of SDICIF and the China Confucius Foundation (CCF) started to collect designs of the standard portrait of Confucius in January.

The sculpture of the first draft of the standard portrait of Confucius. [dzwww.com]

"Ever since Confucius was seen as a sage, people began to apotheosize him, making him look different from commons. Generally speaking, Confucius was portrayed as an ugly person with protruded teeth, eyes, nostrils and ear-holes", said Wang Daqian, vice secretary of CCF. As the birthplace of Confucius, Shandong people felt obliged to give a standard portrait of Confucius to the whole world.

The painting of Confucius by Wu Daozi of the Tang Dynasty (618-907). [File]

The first draft, which was unveiled on June 13th, was based on the painting by Wu Daozi of the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907). Confucius was portrayed in his 60s, mild yet stern, stately yet not ferocious, modest yet peaceful.

During the SDICIF which will open tomorrow, the sculpture of the standard portrait will be shown together with six representative figurines of Confucius. After the fair, the figurines will be sent back to Qufu, the birthplace of Confucius.