Spring Plum Blossoms

'Spring Plum Blossoms'
Yangjiabu, Shandong
20 x 30 cm
Modern reprint of early 20th century picture

Because the hardy plum is the first to blossom in the spring, it has come to represent the arrival of spring as well as birth and renewal in general. In this picture a group of boys play beneath the plum branches and pluck magpies from their nest. This represents happiness (for the boys at least), because the magpie is a symbol of joy and marital bliss.