Covered Box in the Form of a Peach

The carved image on the top of the four-tiered box shows the Daoist immortal Dongfang Shuo stealing the magical Peaches of Immortality. He is depicted here as a long-bearded old man reaching up to pluck one of the peaches from the tree, perhaps in the garden of the mythological goddess, the Queen Mother of the West; he looks to the side, checking to make sure that no one is watching him. When eaten, these magic peaches were thought to confer immortality. The top of the box in the form of a peach depicts a Daoist immortal and his attendant, sailing on a long raft on turbulent waves, surrounded by a band of auspicious symbols of longevity and good fortune, including bats, peaches, and pomegranates.