A Chinese famille rose cup and saucer decorated with two ladies and a boy. Yongzheng

The theme of a woman surrounded by children, and more specifically of a mother with her sons, belongs to a long-established iconography celebrating a happy and prosperous family life. In traditional China, representations of children — particularly boys — carried strong auspicious connotations, expressing the wish for numerous offspring, the continuation of the family line and, more broadly, prosperity and happiness. In Confucian thought, having several sons was considered particularly important for the fulfilment of familial duties and the continuation of ancestral rites; the celebrated theme of the “Hundred Boys” (百子, baizi) represents the fullest expression of this wish for fertility and prosperity.

This theme long predates the development of famille rose porcelain. Depictions of children at play appear in the Chinese decorative arts from at least the Song dynasty onwards and became particularly widespread during the Ming dynasty, occurring in painting as well as on porcelain, lacquer, textiles and jade.

The presence of the cockerel and hen may further enhance the auspicious character of the scene, evoking conjugal harmony, fertility and the continuation of the family line. Together with the child, they contribute to an idealised image of domestic happiness, harmony and prosperity.