A pair of polychrome and gilt enameled baluster vases


Kangxi mark, late Qing/Republic periodEach potted with a flared rim, waisted neck and body of inverted pear form, the neck decorated with peony and narcissus flowers above a gilt-painted sun shining on the body above magpies and sparrows perched on gnarled prunus branches in bloom in various colors with some gilt highlights, the recessed base bearing the six-character mark in underglaze blue standard script enclosed within a double ring. 18 1/2in (47cm) high
|Magpies (xique) are a symbol of joy (xi) in Chinese art. When combined with prunus (mei), they are a visual pun for wishing 'joy up to your eyebrows' (xishang meishao), as mei is also a homophone for eyebrows. The birds chirping on a blossoming branch also announce the arrival of Spring (xibao chun xian): see Terese Tse Bartholomew, Hidden Meanings in Chinese Art (Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, 2006), p. 50, 2.17; and p. 52, 2.17.8 and 2.17.9.