Large porcelain tile decorated with seven birds frolicking on an old tree stump. The tree looks like a grotesque dragon’s head. Red ivy adds extra color. We have not yet been able to identify this type of bird. They have white spots on the front of their wings and white rings around their eyes. There’s little doubt that this scene has a hidden meaning but we have not yet discovered which one. On the painting is a poem which reads: ’A flock of birds praises the day. Spring touches the withered tree which begins a new life’. The quality of the painting is stunning. Different methods of glazing were used to improve the effect. The tile comes from the kilns of the famous Chinese imperial porcelain city Jingdezhen and originally had three lines of text instead of two. During the Cultural Revolution (1966 – 1976), a social-political movement set in motion by Mao Zedong, then chairman of the Communist Party, anything that was old was smashed to pieces by Red Guards, a revolutionary youth organization. Fearing that this beautiful antique tile would suffer a similar fate and that he or she would be severely punished, the owner removed the left line as the possession of such a treasure was considered to be ‘bourgeois’ and strictly forbidden. However, fortunately a part of the removed text is still legible under a certain angle of light and reads: ‘Jiangsu Province, Jingdezhen, East Wing, Porcelain. The last four characters and a seal mark are unreadable but could be the maker’s name and seal. The fact that this tile was hanging in the ‘East wing’ suggests a location in a palace or large mansion. The tile dates from the 19th century but is possibly earlier as the frame and back seem to be later replacements. Height 57 cm. Width 40 cm.