A RARE CHINESE PAINTED SILK EIGHT PANEL BAINIAO CHAOFENG SCREEN

MING/QING DYNASTY

Painted with a phoenix beneath bamboo and a flowering tree, with magpies, kingfishers, swallows, egrets, pheasant, ducks, cranes and many other birds all around him, the rising sun visible through the thin clouds, inscribed to one panel Wan Li yi you chun ri Zhou Zhi Mian xi zuo (during the Springtime in the year of 1585, in the Wanli reign, attributed to Zhou Zhi Mian), 159cm x 372cm. (8)

Cf. T T Bartholomew, Hidden Meanings in Chinese Art, p.160, nos.6.37.2-3.

The phoenix surrounded by many birds is known as the 'hundred birds paying homage to the king', where the phoenix is used to represent prosperity and blessings. The red sun symbolizes the yang or male principle of brightness and warmth as well as righteousness and promotion.