Dragon and Phoenix Yingcai Tea Cup

Tea drinking has been an integral part of Chinese culture for centuries, resulting in a wide range of social customs and material traditions. In addition to tea leaves, water, and heat, the art of drinking tea (chayi) calls for a variety of teaware and utensils - both practical and decorative.

This fine porcelain teacup has a simple, rounded form, shaped with a very thin body and a narrow footed base. Decorated in the style of yingcai ware, or "strong colors," the sides are delicately painted in vibrant overglaze enamels with a dragon and a phoenix soaring through the air. Auspicious creatures that symbolize power and good fortune, the dragon and phoenix together is an emblem of marital bliss and a common motif on wedding gifts.

A six-character seal mark of the Qianlong period (1736-1795) is painted in underglaze blue on the interior of the foot.