A Hall filled with Gold and Jade II
'A Hall filled with Gold and Jade (II)'
Yangjiabu, Shandong
36 x 52 cm
modern reprint of early 20th century image
Male sons were traditionally seen as a great blessing, and parents naturally wished that they would be successful in life. This pair of images reflects that wish in having the boys reach for a gold fish, but because of the rhyming qualities of that phrase, the real meaning is that the boys will grasp 'gold and jade'. The image might have been posted on a door to the room of a young mother or mother to be in hopes that she would have such as son.
copyright 2003
