Chinese blue and white baluster vase and cover, Kangxi (1662-1722), decorated to the body in bright underglaze blue with phoenix in flight amidst flowering branches of prunus and peony.
The neck encircled by a band of ruyi-heads and surmounted by a domed cover with further phoenix and a lotus-bud finial.
The Phoenix is the symbol of virtue and grace. Traditionally, the males were called Feng (凤) and the females Huang (凰) but during the Yuan Dynasty (1271–1368 AD), the Phoenix has become the symbol of femininity.