THE PORCELAIN YONGZHENG/EARLY QIANLONG, CIRCA 1730-1750, THE STANDS OF REGENCE STYLE, 19TH CENTURY

Fish have appeared as pictorial motifs on Chinese ceramics as early as the Neolithic period. Much of their popularity as decorative devices, especially in later dynasties, hinges on the fact that the word for fish (yu) is a homophone for the word for abundance, while the word for carp (li) is a homophone for the word for profit. Traditionally, large basins like the present examples were used as fishbowls, with the arrangement of enamelled fish and aquatic plants to the interior producing a layered effect. In Europe they were used on their own as magnificent objets d'art embellishing an interior or, for more functional purposes, as jardinières.