Page 105 - China's Renaissance in Bronze, The Robert H.CIague Collection of Later Chinese Bronzes 1100-1900

Seldom depicted before the Qing, the bat is another motif that be-
came ubiquitous in the decorative arts of late imperial China. 11 Its popularity
stems not from any ancient classical associations but from a coincidence
involving the pronunciation of its name, fu: in Mandarin Chinese, the char-
7
acters for 'bat and 'good fortune' are homonyms, having exactly the same
12
pronunciation, but different written form. With the Qing fascination with
symbols, the bat appeared in the decorative arts with increasing frequency
as a rebus, or visual pun, wishing the viewer 'good fortune.' The same cul-
tural phenomenon that gave rise to the taotie masks on the previous vessel
that can be read in two different ways [17] has here expressed itself in a
penchant for puns and rebuses.
Although vessel shape and decorative style both indicate a Qing
date for this vase, precise dating remains elusive. In relative terms, the
simple decorative scheme, the direct, unpretentious drawing, the lack of
formal borders, and the willingness to leave a large proportion of the sur-
face undecorated suggest that this vase is later than the previous example.
Since an attribution to the eighteenth century has been proposed for the
previous example, perhaps an attribution to the eighteenth to nineteenth-
century period would not be inappropriate for this one. 13

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