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Chinese Peking Glass Brush Holder - 12 Zodiac Animals browse these categories for related items... All Items: Chinese: Peking Glass: Two Color: Pre 1980: item #741679 Please refer to our stock #ICHI 2557 when inquiring.
$375.00 |
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It is currently the Chinese Year of the Rat – but why settle for an object that only has one of the twelve zodiac animals. This is a 20th century Peking glass brush holder used by scholars for calligraphy and paintings and had all twelve of the animals on it. The body of the brush is a light lavender color and the overlayed layer is a royal blue. The blue overlay has been cut to make a design of the twelve Chinese animals of the zodiac. The brush holder and brush measures 12" long and is 1 3/4" diameter at its widest. Excellent condition – no chips or mars. Late 20th century glass piece. In traditional China, dating methods were cyclical, cyclical meaning something that is repeated time after time according to a pattern. A popular folk method which reflected this cyclical method of recording years are the Twelve Animal Signs. Every year is assigned an animal name or "sign" according to a repeating cycle: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Boar. Therefore, every twelve years the same animal name or "sign" would reappear. According to Chinese legend, the twelve animals quarreled one day as to who was to head the cycle of years. The gods were asked to decide and they held a contest: whoever was to reach the opposite bank of the river would be first, and the rest of the animals would receive their years according to their finish. All the twelve animals gathered at the river bank and jumped in. Unknown to the ox, the rat had jumped upon his back. As the ox was about to jump ashore, the rat jumped off the ox's back, and won the race. The pig, who was very lazy, ended up last. That is why the rat is the first year of the animal cycle, the ox second, and the pig last. (Information taken from the internet article by Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco. 750 Kearny Street, 3rd Floor, San Francisco.) |
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