In this scene, there are several Chinese longevity symbols such as the crane, the generic immortal, the pine tree, and the deer, etc. However, the proper meaning of this particular scene is not a simple assemblage of individual symbols. It is a snapshot of a coherent narrative that has been well-loved and widely consumed in the visual oeuvre that represents the Chinese longevity ideal.

The literary origin of the scene can be traced back to an anecdote collected in Notes by Dongpo (东坡志林), compiled by a prominent man of letters of the Song dynasty, Su Shi (苏轼, 1037-1101). During one chance meeting of three geriatric men, the topic of age was broached. Each one of them tried their best to exaggerate his own great age. The second speaker famously boasted, ‘After every cycle of the sea drying up and becoming mulberry fields, I put a strip of bamboo in my house as a counter and now the strips have already filled ten of the rooms.’ Later, this dramatic detail evolved into a classic allusion to longevity, a popular dream cherished by all people in China. Pictorial representations of this dramatic moment were invented and elaborated into different versions to adorn birthday presents of all kinds.

Initially, the title of the scene is, literally: ‘A bamboo counter is being added to the house in the sea (海屋添筹 hai wu tian chou)’. The first two characters of the phrase resulted from compressing the paragraph spoken by the second speaker in the story into an abbreviation consisting of the first and the last characters 海屋 hai wu (‘海水变桑田时, 吾辄下一筹, 尔来吾筹已满十间屋’). The coined two-character phrase ‘海屋 hai wu’ now means a ‘pavilion at sea’, serving as the first two characters in the set phrase. The rest two characters of the phrase ‘添筹 tianchou’ denotes the action (of a crane) adding a bamboo strip as a counter’. Thus, the four-character phrase alludes to the second speaker’s words in the original story.

During the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), pun rebus designs became more and more popular in folk decorative arts. The last character of the phrase ‘筹 chou’ for ‘bamboo strip counter’, acquired a pun on ‘寿 shou’, the Chinese character for ‘longevity’. Then, the phrase virtually conveys the meaning of a birthday wish: ‘May the length of your life be eternally prolonged (海屋添寿 hai wu tian shou)’. One of the earliest mentions of this pun phrase in literature can be found in Section 22 in the second part of the book Tao Ya (匋雅), or ‘Notes of Chinese Best Pottery and Porcelain’, compiled by Chen Liu (陈浏) and published in 1910.

This research article is written by Dr Yibin Ni.

Literature:

1. Jeffrey P. Stamen and Cynthia Volk with Yibin Ni, A Culture Revealed: Kangxi-Era Chinese Porcelain from the Jie Rui Tang Collection: Jieruitang Publishing, Bruges, 2017, p. 84-85.
2. 倪亦斌：《仙鹤寿桃祝寿碗 暗藏海屋添筹图》，《读者欣赏》，兰州：读者出版传媒股份有限公司，2018-01，110-117 页

This is Scene Two of Act Two of the Chinese classic drama Romance of the Western Chamber (西厢记 Xixiang Ji), written by the Yuan playwright Wang Shifu (1250–1336).

In the preceding chapters, the local bandit Sun Feihu had besieged the monastery, intending to seize Cui Yingying by force. In response, Zhang Gong 张珙 (styled Junrui 君瑞, also known as Scholar Zhang 张生) sought the help of his friend, General White Horse Du Que, who successfully defeated Sun Feihu and lifted the siege. Having benefited from Scholar Zhang’s efforts, Madame Cui decided to host a banquet to express her gratitude.

Overjoyed, Scholar Zhang believed that Madame Cui would honour her previous promise—made before the battle—to betroth him to Miss Cui Yingying 崔莺莺, her beautiful daughter, whom he had long admired. Rising early, he dressed meticulously, eagerly awaiting an invitation from Yingying’s maid, Hongniang 红娘.

Hongniang, too, found Scholar Zhang intelligent, refined, and deeply devoted to Yingying, believing they were a perfect match. When Scholar Zhang hesitated, worrying that he had no betrothal gifts to offer Madame Cui, Hongniang reassured him. She explained that since he had rendered a great service by repelling the bandits, Madame Cui was truly grateful. The banquet was an intimate gathering, with no unrelated monks invited—only Scholar Zhang himself. Therefore, there was no need for him to decline, as ancient wisdom states: ‘Respect is best shown through action (恭敬不如从命)’. (See example in the first image with Chinese characters written in the centre of the dish). Scholar Zhang should simply attend the banquet without hesitation.

story scene description by Rachel Ma

See all episodes here: Romance of the Western Chamber

Zhang Liang (张良, d. 189 BCE) was an ambitious young man and was looking for opportunities to overturn the emperor at that time. He ran into a guru strategist Lord Yellowstone (黄石公 Huang Shigong) by the Yi Bridge 圯桥, where Lord Yellowstone tested Zhang three times for his humility and perseverance before taking him as his protégé. (see Zhang Liang Fetching Shoe on Yi Bridge)

Lord Yellowstone was impressed by Zhang eventually, and willingly passed on his books and taught Zhang the ancient wisdoms and art of war.

Later, Zhang helped the founder of the Han dynasty, Liu Bang (刘邦, d. 195 BCE), with the invincible strategies and became one of Liu’s top three lieutenants.

The figural scenes here are depicting Zhang Liang receiving or reading the book given by Lord Yellowstone.

images on porcelain: first deciphered by Yibin Ni

Related research article:

Why is the scene of a man holding a shoe popular in Chinese antique artworks?

This is Scene Two of Act Two of the Chinese classic popular drama Romance of the Western Chamber (西厢记 Xixiang Ji), written by the Yuan playwright Wang Shifu (1250–1336).

Sun Feihu 孙飞虎, a local bandit, was attracted to Miss Cui Yingying (崔莺莺)’s beauty and wanted to abduct her from the Buddhist monastery where her temporary residence was with her family. Zhang Gong 张珙 (styled Junrui 君瑞, nickname Scholar Zhang 张生), who fell in love with Yingying, was also stuck in the temple. As the monastery was surrounded by Sun’s army, Yingying’s mother promised that whoever defeated the Sun’s army could marry her daughter.

Scholar Zhang came up with an idea of asking help from his childhood friend Du Que 杜确, who was known as ‘General White Horse (白马将军)’. He was leading a troop of a hundred thousand warriors and stationed at Puguan Pass 蒲关, about forty to fifty miles away. Scholar Zhang was confident that if his letter for help was sent to General White Horse, the general would be able to come to the rescue and defeat the bandit. However, Zhang Gong himself, as a weak scholar, was unable to break through the heavy siege of the army to deliver the letter. Who would be the most suitable person then? The head abbot, Fa Ben 法本, thought of a monk named Huiming 惠明 who was known for indulging in food and alcohol, and neglecting Buddhist practices. Sure enough, with the right words, Huiming was excited and keen to take up the task. On his way out, he promised good news upon his return.

story scene description by Rachel Ma

Other episodes in the Romance of the Western Chamber:

Scholar Zhang embarking on his journey to sit for civil-service examinations 张生赶考

Scholar Zhang renting a room in the monastery 僧房假寓 (禅关假馆)

Scholar Zhang and Cui Yingying exchanging verses in the garden 唱和东墙 (墙角联吟)

Scholar Zhang getting drunk due to Madame Cui’s broken promise 张生醉酒 (崔母悔婚)

Yingying receiving good news delivered by the pageboy 泥金报捷

Jia Chang (贾昌 712–810) from the Tang Dynasty was renowned for his exceptional skills in training roosters for cockfighting. His legendary story is recorded in the Extensive Records of the Taiping Era (太平广记 Taiping Guangji).

Li Longji (李隆基 685–762), Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (唐玄宗), had a passion for cockfighting during his youth. After ascending the throne, he built a grand chicken yard between the two palaces, raising over a thousand roosters with golden feathers and iron-like claws.

At the age of seven, Jia Chang displayed a remarkable ability to understand the language of birds. Unable to afford real chickens, he played with wooden ones, making them appear lifelike. Once, while Emperor Xuanzong was on a tour, he witnessed Jia Chang’s extraordinary performance and immediately summoned him to the palace to take care of the chicken yard.

Jia Chang quickly became familiar with the chicken flocks and could accurately assess their strength, courage, and health. On occasions such as the Emperor’s birthday, New Year’s Day, and the Qingming Festival (清明节), grand celebrations were held, with cockfighting being one of the most exciting events. During these performances, Jia Chang would wear a jade-encrusted gold coronet, clothes with embroidered sleeves, silk trousers, and hold a bell to clear the way. The roosters would enter the arena in an orderly fashion. Under Jia Chang’s command, signalled by his whip, the roosters would fluff their feathers and fight fiercely. Once the victor was determined, Jia Chang would order them to stop. With a gesture of his whip, the roosters would regroup, the winners leading and the defeated following, marching back to the chicken yard in perfect order, like a flock of geese in flight.

Due to his extraordinary skills, Jia Chang was widely known as the ‘Miracle Chicken Boy’ at the age of thirteen.

The story scene depicted on the Kangxi dish in the collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum was deciphered by Rachel Ma

24 Dec 2024

Related Pun Rebus Pictures:

May my Lord live up to one hundred years 三公百寿

May you do well in exams and enjoy wealth and prestige 功名富贵

May your wealth and privilege expectable 富贵有期

When the Baron of the Zhou vassal state (周西伯) did a divination with oracle bones for his imminent hunting trip, the message came: ‘You will not catch a small bear or a large bear, but a teacher will be presented to you by the divine power.’ After bathing and fasting for three days, the baron arrived at the River Wei, he saw an elderly man sitting on a grassy mat with a fishing rod beside him at the bank. The baron respectfully bowed to him and politely asked him to be his mentor. He invited the man to sit in his vehicle on the way back to the capital. This elderly man was Jiang Ziya (姜子牙), the famous sage strategist in ancient China. Later, when the baron passed away, his son, who posthumously bestowed his father the title of King Wen (文王), called himself King Wu (武王). With the able assistance of Jiang, who was then respectfully called Jiang Taigong (姜太公), King Wu launched a military campaign to overthrow the ruling Shang house (商, ca. 1600 BCE–1046 BCE) and established the new Zhou dynasty (1046 BCE–256 BCE), which lasted about eight hundred years.

There is another story about Jiang Ziya on his assistance to King Wu in launching a military campaign to overthrow the Shang house. Dr Yibin Ni also wrote an article on the identification of Jiang’s famous yet mysterious ride.

References:

1. 倪亦斌：《子牙垂钓遇文王 明君得辅破殷商》，《读者欣赏》，兰州：读者出版传媒股份有限公司，2016-05，58–63 页
2. Jeffrey P. Stamen and Cynthia Volk with Yibin Ni (2017), A Culture Revealed: Kangxi-Era Chinese Porcelain from the Jie Rui Tang Collection 文采卓然：潔蕊堂藏康熙盛世瓷, Jieruitang Publishing, Bruges, pp. 92-93.

According to Confucian ethics, a man’s ambition and pride need to be balanced by humility.

General Lian Po (廉颇, active 298–236 BC) and Minister Lin Xiangru (蔺相如, active ca. 279 BC) were colleagues in the government of the state of Zhao. When Lin Xiangru received a higher appointment than Lian Po’s, Lian Po felt it was unjustified. He swore, ‘When I meet Lin, I shall humiliate him!’ Hearing this, Lin deliberately kept out of Lian Po’s way. His followers did not understand his response and thought he was a coward until Lin explained to them, ‘When two tigers fight, one will perish. I am behaving this way in order to put our country’s interests before private feuds so that we can have enough strength to survive threats from our enemies.’ When Lian Po heard this, he came to Lin’s residence and begged for forgiveness. The two then became friends for life.

In Fig 1 & 3, General Lian Po was apologising to Lin in front of the King of Zhao, while the other ministers present congratulate the king for his luck in being surrounded by such sensible courtiers.

image identification and story scene description by Dr Yibin Ni 

This is a story of a brave woman who boldly exercised her rhetorical competence, managed to correct the erring ruler and saved her husband from execution. The story of The Wife of the Bow Maker in the State of Jin (晋弓工妻) is recorded in Chapter 6 Convincing and Perceptive (辩通传), Biographies of Exemplary Women (列女传 Lienv zhuan), the earliest extant book for moral education of women in China.

Duke Ping of Jin (晋平公, r. 557-532 BCE) was the sovereign of the State of Jin. Once he ordered a bow to be made for his personal use and the job took three years to finish. The duke happily received the new bow and tried it out with great expectation. Wooden strips for writing at that time were used as the testing target. The duke was sorely dismayed when the arrow did not pierce even one layer of the wooden strips. The duke wanted to have the bow maker executed for his utter incompetence. As soon as the bow maker’s wife heard about the news, she rushed to the palace. In front of the duke, the bow maker’s wife demonstrated her brilliant mastery of reasoning skills. First, she quoted famous benevolent anecdotes practised by past admirable rulers. Second, she enumerated all the best materials her husband had managed to select over a very long time in order to make this finest bow. Third, she pointed out that it is absolutely absurd to blame the bow for the previous ineffective shooting since it was none other than the result of the duke’s misuse of the bow. She then went on teaching the duke the right way of holding the bow and drawing the string and the right moment to release the arrow. The duke followed her advice. This time, the arrow hit the target and went right through seven layers of wooden strips! The reputation of the bow maker was instantly restored and the duke rewarded him 60 taels of gold.

The story scene depicted in the middle of the Kangxi plate currently collected by V&A Museum was first unveiled by Dr Yibin Ni. His article with historical evidence is published here.

When the old duke of Jin (晋) passed away, his heir was still in the cradle. It was with the powerful minister Zhao Dun (赵盾)’s support that he succeeded in ascending the throne. Unfortunately, the young duke, who was posthumously given the title Duke Ling of Jin, Jìn Líng Gōng (晋灵公, ? – 607 BCE), became increasingly the opposite of an ideal ruler. When the righteous Zhao Dun tried to alter the young duke’s misbehaviours by repeated remonstrances, he aroused resentment in the duke’s heart, who subsequently made several attempts on his life.

Once he made the excuse to invite Zhao to drink with him while soldiers were gathered to ambush him. Zhao’s retainer Timi Ming (提弥明) realised the plot and rushed to the table to rescue his master. When Zhao was supported to leave the place, the duke sent his immense dog to attack him. Timi was a valiant fighter and he smote the brute and put an end to it.

This scene served as a classic admonishing example for statesmen and rulers alike.

Read Dr Yibin Ni’s research article – How a massacre in ancient China influenced European literature, painting and theatre in Blogs section.

The young duke of the State of Jin (晋) who was posthumously given the title Duke Ling of Jin, Jìn Líng Gōng (晋灵公, ? – 607 BCE), has been known as a ‘ruler who does not deserve his title (bu jun 不君)’. His despotic behaviour was enumerated in the records by historiographers. For example, he levied heavy taxes to build more fancy palaces; he had the chef killed only because he didn’t cook his bear paws soft enough; and, when he was bored with shooting birds and animals in his ever-expanding parks, he whimsically indulged in shooting his ministers and pedestrians with catapult slingshots from his palatial terrace and enjoyed watching the victims suffering from the hazard and ducking the pellets.

image identification and story scene description by Dr Yibin Ni 

Read more in Dr Ni’ research article ‘How a massacre in ancient China influenced European literature, painting and theatre’.