W450xH600mm, China
This is a glass painting of a pair of Lady Amherst’s pheasant (Chrysolophus amherstiae) which are native to south western China and north eastern part of Myanmar. For the Chinese, the Lady Amherst’s pheasant is a noble bird. At the time of monarchy the Empress, being the highest ranking second only to the Emperor, would have phoenix as a pattern. For the first ranking official, their costume would have a red crown crane, while the second ranking official the Lady Amherst’s pheasant. The third ranking, the green peafowl and the fifth the silver pheasant, the eighth being the quail.
Mountain Folkcraft 