Gabriel Argy-Rousseau "Peach Blossom" Cameo Glass Vase

Argy-Rousseau's "Peach Blossom" Cameo Glass vase features red peach blossoms with cream and purple centers that adorn the black branches encircling the cream ground with interspersed green, orange and purple mottling. Rousseau peach blossom vase was likely meant to be a chinoiserie, as the peach blossom was a staple of Chinese art. After the fall of the last Chinese Dynasty in 1911, Chinese art experienced a renewed vogue in Europe. Peach blossoms had been the muses of Chinese literati for centuries, often associated with love and marriage. “The Beautiful Peach” (“Tao Yao”), a poem from the oldest existing collection of Chinese poetry, starts with the praise of peach blossoms as a metaphor for the charm of a bride.