piggy back group china kangxi famille verte biscuit

Two famille verte biscuit ‘piggy-back’ groups. China, Kangxi

The two groups, forming a pair, each depict two young Chinese boys in a so-called ‘piggy-back’ composition, one carrying his companion on his back. The figures are modelled in biscuit and partially covered with famille verte enamels. Their garments are highlighted in a vivid green enamel, while their shoes and hair are picked out in black. The boys being carried lean playfully over their companions’ shoulders, their arms wrapped around the bearers. Each group is adorned at the side with a lotus flower enamelled in yellow and aubergine. The faces, left white, are delicately modelled with smiling expressions. The figures stand on moulded hexagonal bases enamelled in green, yellow and aubergine.

COUNTRY : China
TIME: Kangxi (1662-1722)i
MATERIAL : Porcelain (biscuit)
SIZE : 13 cm
REFERENCE : F015
STATUS : disponible
Information request
Related works .

Larger figures in biscuit or enamelled porcelain are also known.

For a related more complex group, see William Sargent, Copeland Collection: Chinese and Japanese Ceramic Figures, Peabody Essex Museum, 2006, p.103, fig. 47.

Additional information.

The “piggy-back” pose provides a sophisticated visual pun or rebus. The act of carrying someone on one’s back is called bèi (背), which is homophonous with the character bèi (辈), meaning “generations”. Consequently, this playful scene forms the blessing bèibèi (辈辈), expressing the wish for the family’s success, wealth, and nobility to be preserved and passed down “generation after generation”

The motif of a figure giving another a “piggy-back” ride is noted by William Sargent as an unusual but significant 1 subject in the Chinese ceramic repertoire. This pose is traditionally associated with Fu Xing (福星), the Daoist Star-God of Happiness. Frequently depicted in the robes of a Mandarin carrying a young boy, Fu Xing forms part of the celebrated Sanxing (Three Stars) trio alongside Lu (Rank) and Shou (Longevity). The presence of the child on the back serves to reinforce the central themes of domestic joy and the vital importance of familial continuity.

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