Double Gourd Longevity Cricket Cage

The practice of keeping crickets as pets began in China as early as the Tang dynasty (618-907). Appreciated for their chirping "songs," crickets were caught at the end of summer and kept in ornate cages throughout the winter, often placed bedside. The slender form of this gourd cricket cage indicates it was designed to be portable, carried around in a pocket or strung on a waistband.

The original hardwood lid dates to the early 20th century and is carved with a scene of a scholar riding a horse beside a young boy atop a water buffalo. The dried gourd body is molded to a double gourd shape, a symbol of luck and prosperity, and decorated with a simple meander and coin design that reads "long life with no boundary."