The Painting of the Red Phoenix Facing the Rising Sun

The Painting of the Red Phoenix Facing the Rising Sun

According to the Legend, the phoenix is the bird of happiness and fortune, and also the king of all birds.

It is recorded in Volume A, Da Ya, Shi Jing (Classic of Poetry): “The phoenix sings, on that hillock; the phoenix tree smiles, towards that rising sun.” There is a metaphor in the poem that the phoenix is the wisdom, and the rising sun indicates a flourishing age. Therefore it means that a wise person is born to a flourishing age.

There is a phoenix singing towards the rising sun in this painting, with flowers blossom and auspicious birds around it, which is a rarely-seen auspice. The painting was a high quality Suzhou silk embroidery which was appreciated by many emperors for its meaning.