Blue and White Koi & Lotus Brush Pot

Set alongside the four treasures of the study - the calligraphy brush, ink, paper, and inkstone - a brush pot, or bitong, was an essential fixture of the scholars' desk. This porcelain brush pot beautifully exemplifies this traditional form with the classical artistry of Chinese blue-and-white ceramics. Brushed atop a cool white field is a fantastical underwater scene of children playing in a forest of lotus blossoms and riding on the backs of koi fish, a motif in Chinese art expressing a wish for abundance year after year.