{"id":1044,"date":"2025-02-28T03:28:47","date_gmt":"2025-02-28T03:28:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antiquerugstudio.com\/blog\/?p=1044"},"modified":"2025-02-28T03:28:48","modified_gmt":"2025-02-28T03:28:48","slug":"the-shou-symbol-on-antique-chinese-peking-carpets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/antiquerugstudio.com\/blog\/2025\/02\/28\/the-shou-symbol-on-antique-chinese-peking-carpets\/","title":{"rendered":"The Shou Symbol on Antique Chinese Peking\u00a0Carpets"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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23269 Chinese Peking 9’0″ x 11’6″ circa 1890<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Chinese art loves symbols! Whether they are calligraphic, pictorial, animals or flowers, objects or natural phenomena; it is difficult to find a\u00a0Chinese carpet\u00a0without some symbolic elements.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u201cShou\u201d motif is one of the most popular designs that say \u201cChinese\u201d.\u00a0 The motif\u00a0 literally means \u201clong life\u201d in its original calligraphic character form. The character has been stylized into two basic types, each with two sub types. A round, closed version is found in simplified and somewhat more complex variations. The other form is more calligraphic, open and squared, with more and less elaborate sub types.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Antique Peking\u00a0blue and white carpets have made liberal use of the Shou element in both field and border.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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22843 Chinese Peking 7’2″ x 10’4″<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

An obvious use of a bold round Shou medallion is to center the entire composition on an otherwise plain field. But it is actually quite uncommon, especial when executed in a restricted palette of two blue tones, with no white or secondary hues. The effect is elegant, striking and timeless, the perfect Chinese carpet accompaniment to Art Deco or Modern furnishings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A large scale rendering of either form of the open Shou character as a central medallion does not occur often on antique Peking Chinese rugs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Shou can appear in small form as part of an overall pattern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main border is a frequent home for the round Shou motif, especially on small Chinese scatter rugs in the blue and white palette. A few examples employ it in both field and border, and in equal scale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The small scale, open, square form is popular on blue and white antique Chinese rugs either as a border or field pattern. The Fette-Li company in Peking in the interwar period employed many unique designs based on traditional Chinese textiles, bronzes, jades and ceramics, but, surprisingly did not make extensive use of the Shou symbol. For an exception see number 22975. Fette carpets resemble no others from the 1920-30\u2019s yet they are still recognizably Chinese without being \u201cChinesey\u201d or otherwise blatantly exotic.<\/p>\n\n\n