AMENDMENTS ( Please see in notes below) A large Chinese porcelain famille rose oval straining dish, Jiaqing period, the dish painted with a seated scholar and attendant in an expansive river landscape, inside a border of bats and flowering lotus scrolls, painted to the rim with butterflies, peonies, lingzhi, chrysanthemum, and lotus, the straining plate painted with a similar scene, 44.5cm x 37cm Provenance: Private London collection

Slight wear to decoration, but no chips cracks or signs of restoration

Notes: The flared rim of this dish is finely painted with butterflies and a host of different flowers, each bearing auspicious connotations. Sprigs of purple lingzhi can be seen. Often considered by Daoist mystics to be the food of the gods, the lingzhi fungus is a symbol of longevity. Painted beside the lingzhi sprigs are a number of pink hibiscus flowers known as jushuanghua (resisting frost flower) which again, symbolise longevity. Chrysanthemums are a prominent flower painted to the rim. The word for chrysanthemum, ju, sounds similar to the work jiu, meaning ‘long enduring’, another flower associated with longevity. The red petals painted on the rim are that of a camellia. Their red colour is associated with joy and protection, and its blossoms are sometimes used to decorate homes around the time of Chinese New Year to secure prosperity in the coming year. A variety of butterflies are exquisitely painted around the rim. Butterflies are symbolic of happiness in marriage, and everlasting romantic love.