QIANLONG-JIAQING PERIOD, CIRCA 1800

The elephant is associated with strength, wisdom and intelligence, and is also held in high esteem in Buddhist beliefs. An elephant with a vase upon its back forms the rebus Taiping Youxian, which is a wish for peace and harmony. Models of elephants carrying vases on their backs were therefore often placed on either side of a throne to represent universal peace.
A pair of blue cloisonné enamel elephants with vases on their backs can be seen flanking the elaborate throne in the Hall of Supreme Harmony in the Forbidden City, Beijing, in a photograph illustrated in Imperial Life in the Qing Dynasty, The Empress Place Museum, Singapore, 1989, p. 46.