漢代藝術研究所稱的「樓閣拜謁圖」，是東漢魯中南祠堂畫像最重要的主題；其建築的性質與主題的含義，自上世紀初以來，便是學者爭論的焦點。本文從以下角度，對這主題的起源做一探討：（一）「樓閣拜謁」之建築，不僅是人物的背景，也是意義的符號；（二）它與設於建築中的另一意義符號－即男子拜謁與眾女端坐的場面，共同構成了一意義語句；兩者的意義，是相互徵引、相互定義的；（三）這一意義語句，是對漢代某種與建築有關的觀念之表達。從以上假設出發，本文歸納了漢代可居建築的主要類型，即宮殿、官署、與住宅（兼及樓），以及漢代人所賦予四者的禮儀或意識形態含義；繼而總結了漢代藝術中建築表現的主要類型，即平面圖型、描繪型、與圖符型；以此為基礎，本文推斷「樓閣拜謁」之建築屬於圖符類型，其刻畫的建築為前後殿／室，而非畫面呈現的樓閣。爾後，本文把「樓閣拜謁」主題，重新置回其原出的語境－即孝堂山祠與武氏諸祠中，對與之配屬的主題之符合漢代君主的禮儀角色與意識形態功能，做了分析；複依據當地曾有諸侯王「以天子禮葬」的史實，推斷「樓閣拜謁」及與之配屬的主題，乃初源於東漢的皇家藝術；「樓閣拜謁圖」的初義，是漢代君權的象徵。在此背景下，本文又討論了常與「樓閣拜謁圖」並出的另一主題－即「大樹射爵圖」的初源與初義，結論是這一主題，當源於紀念光武「興復漢室」的陵寢繪畫。

The motif typically described in scholarship on Han dynasty art as the ”Homage Scene in a Pavilion” is the most significant subject in ancestral shrines in Shandong Province. The nature of the structure depicted in this motif has been a focus of debate since the early twentieth century. The present essay explores the origins of this motif from the following perspectives: (1) The structure in ”Homage Scene in a Pavilion” is not only background for human figures, but a meaningful symbol in its own right; (2) The structure's meaning is discursively linked to, and defined by, that of another symbol situated within it - the scene of male figures and female figures. (3) This symbolic discourse expresses a Han architectural concept and a related ideology. To create a framework for exploring these hypotheses, the essay divides habitable buildings of the Han dynasty into palaces, offices, and residences (including multistoried halls), and explains the ritual and ideological significance of each in Han times. It then summarizes the primary representation modes used by Han artists for depicting buildings: plan, description, and icon. On this basis, the author argues that the building depicted in ”Homage Scene in a Pavilion” belongs to the iconic category of architectural representation, and that it therefore shows anterior and posterior halls, rather than a multistoried building in section. He proceed to situate the ”Homage Scene in a Pavilion” motif in its original context - the Xiaotangshan and Wu Family shrines and to analyze the correspondence between the building and subordinate motifs, on one hand, and the royal ceremonial and ideological significances embodied in them, on the other. In light of the historical evidence of nobles on whom were bestowed the funerary prerogatives of the Son-of-Heaven, the author surmises that the building and subordinate motifs emerged from the art of the Eastern Han imperial family, and that ”Homage Scene in a Pavilion” originally symbolized Han imperial authority. The essay concludes with a discussion of the origins and original meaning of another motif- ”Shooting Birds in a Great Tree” - that is frequently found in conjunction with the ”Paying Homage in a Pavilion” motif. The author argues that this motif derives from paintings in the mausoleum of Emperor Guangwu that commemorated his restoration of the Han.