Crabapple, China rose, and Indian flycatcher

1750

Not on view

This sumptuous painting evokes a rebus, or multipart visual pun, that transforms it from a decorative image into one laden with meaning. The two long-tailed birds (shoudai niao 綬帶鳥) symbolize “double longevity” (shuangshou 雙壽), while the rose (yueji 月季) and crabapple (haitang 海棠) stand for “high hall” (gaotang 高堂), a respectful term for one’s parents. Taken together, the pictures encode a wish of “long life for your parents.”

Artwork Details

清　沈銓（沈南蘋）　高堂雙壽圖　軸
Title: Crabapple, China rose, and Indian flycatcher
Artist: Shen Quan (Shen Nanpin) (Chinese, 1682–after 1762)
Period: Qing dynasty (1644–1911)
Date: 1750
Culture: China
Medium: Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk
Dimensions: Image: 45 13/16 x 19 11/16 in. (116.4 x 50 cm)
Overall with mounting: 82 x 26 1/4 in. (208.3 x 66.7 cm)
Overall with knobs: 82 x 28 5/16 in. (208.3 x 71.9 cm)
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: The Harry G. C. Packard Collection of Asian Art, Gift of Harry G. C. Packard, and Purchase, Fletcher, Rogers, Harris Brisbane Dick, and Louis V. Bell Funds, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, and The Annenberg Fund Inc. Gift, 1975
Object Number: 1975.268.82
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

More Artwork

In the same medium

From the same time and place

A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.

Amitabha, the Buddha of the Western Pure Land (Sukhavati), Distemper with gold on cloth, Central Tibet — Amitabha, the Buddha of the Western Pure Land (Sukhavati)
Central Tibet
ca. 1700

Woman at her dressing table, Leng Mei Chinese, Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk, China — Woman at her dressing table
Leng Mei
18th century

The Kangxi Emperor's Southern Inspection Tour, Scroll Three: Ji'nan to Mount Tai, Wang Hui and assistants Chinese, Handscroll; ink and color on silk, China — The Kangxi Emperor's Southern Inspection Tour, Scroll Three: Ji'nan to Mount Tai
Wang Hui
datable to 1698

Zhou Maoshu Admiring Lotuses, Kaihō Yūsetsu Japanese, Hanging scroll; ink on silk, Japan — Zhou Maoshu Admiring Lotuses
Kaihō Yūsetsu
mid-17th century

Portrait of the Great Master Seosan
, Unidentified artist, Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk, Korea — Portrait of the Great Master Seosan
Unidentified artist
late 17th–18th century

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.