Antique/Vintage Sweetmeats Confection-Mold, China (19434DRK) $425

Description

This antique hard wood mold was hung it in a kitchen, the center of activity of the Chinese home. Virtually all homes had a confection-mold to prepare sweetmeats made by placing pastry dough with various fillings in the mold and turning it over on a sheet to be baked. Many were used to make mooncakes for the Autumn Moon Festival but given the center’s large size (8”), it might have been a general mold rather than for mooncakes. This folk-art mold with a protective lacquer coating embodies the Chinese belief that placing auspicious objects on functional-and-utilitarian objects fill the home with fu, the Five Blessings or Happinesses: health, wealth, longevity, a virtuous life and a peaceful death. This mold is covered with propitious symbols: Dragons (lung) are mythical animals symbolizing prosperity and fertility; fish like this carp signifies abundance and a pair of fish symbolizes fertility, conjugal bliss and harmony while a pair of ducks symbolize conjugal fidelity. The combination of a duck atop the carp is a wish for passing civil exams and achieving noble rank that assures one’s success in life, and the boat with a sail is wish for these endeavors to be “easy sailing.” With its references to marital happiness, bearing sons and embarking on and succeeding in new endeavors, this mold was probably a wedding gift to set a new couple in the right direction. Kitchen-accessories like this make unique gifts. It is in excellent condition with a hole on the top with a string for hanging.