Fortune-increasing Gods of Wealth

Tags: god | print

The painting juxtaposes the two seated gods of wealth: the red-faced Zhao Gongming, the martial god of wealth, who carries a gold ingot, while the white-faced is Bi Gan, the civil god of wealth (believed to be the prime minister of King Zhou), who holds a ruyi (a traditional Chinese ornament symbolizing good fortune). On the shrine stands a pair of scales balancing ingots. Two divine attendants are in the foreground, and to the rear of the gods of wealth is a treasure pot. This kind of paintings is used by merchants in Beijing to pray for wealth.

 

Printmaking
31 x20.5 cm

National Museum of History