The two wares were among the objects shown at an auction preview recently held in Beijing. Other highlights include Mu Lan Hua Man, a letter done in the kaishu regular script of calligraphy by Gu Yanshou who lived in the late Song and early Yuan (1271-1368) dynasties.
A rare feature of this piece, to congratulate a friend's birthday, is that it was written on huajian ("flower paper"), a specially kind of paper in Song which was made to the tailored designs by scholars at the time. The unique craft integrated floral motifs with the paper, while making the surface smooth and flat, and the patterns can be seen only from certain angles. It shows the typical Song artistry prompted by the intellectual group, and the craft later extinguished.
