A grey pottery tile, likely from a Shanxi province tomb. The tile has been partially cold painted with red, orange and black pigments, and depicts a scene in relief from one of the 'Twenty-four Paragons of Filial Piety'. Filial piety is a virtue centered on respecting, loving, and caring for one's parents and ancestors, particularly within Chinese Confucian and Buddhist ethics. This tile depicts a scene from the story of Zhao Xiao.
 
Chinese Jin period: 1115 to 1234 AD.
 
Good overall condition. Expected surface wear but no signs of restoration or repair.
Height 27.5 cms (10.8 ins).
Weight 5.3 kgs.
 
Provenance: From the collection of The Late Brian Page (1938-2018), the well-known Oriental art and antiques dealer from Brighton. Each item being acquired circa 1990s.
 
Cai Shun, who lived in the Han dynasty, lost his father when he was a teenager and took very good care of his mother ever since. At that time society was plunged into political chaos by the Wang Mang usurpation and was furthermore beset by famine. Cai and his mother lived off gathered mulberries because everything from firewood to grain was expensive. One day he met some Red Eyebrow rebels who asked him why he separated the black and red mulberries into two baskets. He replied that the black mulberries were for his mother while the red ones were for himself. The rebels took mercy on him for his filial piety, and to show their respect, they gave him two pecks of rice and a beef hoof.