18th century
The small washer is in the shape of a lady's shoe with high back and pointed upturned toe. The yellow sides are divided into two halves and encircled by a blue border issuing short feathery scrolls.
The base is painted in coloured enamels with an erotic scene, showing a naked couple in amorous pursuits in an interior, with their clothes spread on the floor, a flower vase on a high table, and a scholar's rock outside seen from an open door. The interior of the shoe is glazed turquoise.
Length: 8.4 cm
This so-called' lotus' shoe was meant for a ladie's bound foot.
In traditional China, especially during the Song (960-1279) throughout the Qing (1644-1912) dynasties, the bound feet were considered as the most intimate and erotic part of a woman's body, symbols of feminine beauty, elegance and sexuality. Therefore, small-size shoes were deeply intertwined with sexuality, eroticism, and patriarchal perceptions of femininity.
PF 51 十八世紀 彩繪秘戲圖繡花鞋型筆洗
時代：18世紀
特徵：筆洗作翹頭繡花鞋型，黃色器身飾藍框。底部描繪秘戲場景，室內裝飾細節精緻。器內施松石綠色釉。
尺寸：長8.4公分
