Panel with gourds on vines

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

As the word for gourd is a homophone of “fortune and prosperity” in Chinese, the fruit became a popular motif in eighteenth-century art. Here, meticulously woven silk threads represent ten gourds growing out of lush vines. The large gourd at center is imbued with additional auspicious meaning. Over a geometric-patterned background, the artist added two Chinese characters that read “grand luck” (da ji) and images of the Eight Buddhist Treasures.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art