Wedding Banner Woven Pheonix and Dragon Design Symbolized Man and Women

A newlywed couple would have hung this banner on the wall of their living quarters. The character 囍 (meaning “bliss”), couched with golden threads at the center, is flanked by embroidered dragons and phoenixes, which represent the union between a male and female. Surrounding the two animals are bats (signifying good fortune) holding coins (symbolizing wealth) in their mouths; peaches (representing wishes for long life); cintamani, or the magic jewel (thought to fulfill wishes); the Endless Knot (one of the Eight Buddhist treasures); and the Buddhist “swastika.” The spaces between these motifs are embroidered with clouds as a prayer for long life. As the Chinese words for “bat” and “fortune” are homonyms, a bat symbolizes good fortune. The cintamani, or the magic jewel, was a tool sometimes used by Buddhist monks when preaching. Thus the jewel was believed to guide its holder to accomplishment. Another story about the magic jewel tells of a poor but virtuous gentleman given this jewel by a Daoist; a mere shake of this jewel is said to have created all the things he desired. For this reason, the cintamani came to represent the fulfillment of all wishes.