Lot Essay
Other vessels of this type, where the compressed body with a spout has a character or symbol spanning the interior have been published. One with a shou (longevity) character in the Tianjin Municipal Museum is illustrated in Can Yu, Hong Kong, 1993, pls. 204-205. One with a xi (happiness) character from the Helen and Peter Collection was included in the 45th Anniversary Exhibition of the Min Chiu Society, Auspicious Emblems, Hong Kong, 2005, no. 218. One with a shuangxi (double happiness) symbol was included in the exhibition Magic, Art and Order: Jade in Chinese Culture, Palm Springs Desert Museum, 1990, no. 120. And another with a shuangxi symbol from the collection of Alan and Simone Hartman, was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 27 November 2007, lot 1539. As with the present example, the various characters or symbols are 'suspended' from a musical chime on one side of the rim and on the other side of the rim are hung with tassels that frame the spout.