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Paintings and Displays

Paintings, embroidered panels, and decorative displays were common features of traditional Chinese dowries. Beyond beautifying the household, these objects conveyed messages about the qualities expected of a wife and the future hoped for her marriage. The images chosen were rarely decorative alone; they often reflected social values surrounding family, fertility, and women's roles.

One of the most common symbols was the pomegranate (石榴, shíliu). Because a single fruit contains hundreds of seeds, it became a symbol of fertility and the wish for many descendants. Pomegranate motifs frequently appeared on paintings, embroidery, bedding, furniture, and wedding decorations. While presented as a blessing, the symbol also reflected the expectation that a woman's primary responsibility after marriage was to bear children, especially sons, who would continue the family lineage.

Another popular image was the "Hundred Children" painting (百子图, bǎizǐ tú), which depicted large groups of healthy boys playing together. Similarly, the Descendants Bucket (子孙桶, zǐsūn tǒng), is another traditional wedding container included in many bridal dowries, particularly in eastern China. It was often filled with symbolic foods such as red dates (红枣, hóngzǎo), peanuts (花生, huāshēng), longan fruit (桂圆, guìyuán), and melon seeds (瓜子, guāzǐ). These foods were chosen because their names formed the well-known blessing “早生贵子” (zǎo shēng guì zǐ), meaning "may you soon give birth to a noble son." Paintings and displays expressed hopes for prosperity, family continuity, and numerous male descendants. The emphasis on sons reflected the importance of patrilineal inheritance in traditional Chinese society, where family names, property, and ancestral rites were passed through the male line.

These foods were chosen because their names formed the well-known blessing “早生贵子” (zǎo shēng guì zǐ), meaning "may you soon give birth to a noble son."

Together, the pomegranate and the Hundred Children painting reveal how ideas about marriage and womanhood were embedded in everyday objects. They celebrated fertility, family prosperity, and lineage continuation, but they also placed significant pressure on women to fulfill reproductive expectations. A bride entering her new home would be surrounded by constant visual reminders that her success as a wife was often measured by her ability to produce children and strengthen her husband's family line.

These paintings and displays therefore served a dual purpose. They were expressions of hope and blessing, yet they also reinforced the social expectations placed upon women within a patriarchal family system. Through seemingly decorative images, broader ideals about gender, family, and marriage were communicated and preserved across generations.

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