Calebasses

Mr du Gardin wrote on the back of the painting to explain that double-gourds are one of the favorite subjects of master Qi Baishi for their auspicious symbolism and the yellow colour which is reminiscent of gold. In the Chinese culture, the double-gourd is the homonym of fu, meaning great happiness. He also noted that he purchased this painting directly from the artist in the autumn of 1951 for 15 yuan and it was mounted in Hong Kong in the 1970s.