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¾ô»·âºîThis pun rebus picture consists of four essential pictorial elements: bird, deer, bee, and monkey. The word ¡®que ȸ¡¯ for ¡®small bird¡¯ in Chinese puns on the word ¡®jue ¾ô¡¯ for ¡®high official rank¡¯ or ¡®peerage¡¯. The word ¡®lu ¹¡¯ for ¡®deer¡¯ shares the same sound with ¡®lu »¡¯ for ¡®emolument¡¯ or ¡®salary¡¯. The word ¡®feng ·ä¡¯ for ¡®bee¡¯, is a pun on ¡®feng ·â¡¯ for the verb ¡®to be granted¡¯ and the word ¡®hou ºï¡¯ for ¡®monkey¡¯ is a pun on ¡®hou ºî¡¯ for ¡®marquis¡¯, which represents high ranks in the government in general. Thus, the juxtaposition of the four elements is used to convey the auspicious message of ¡®May you be created a peer and earn a handsome official income¡¯. Curios bearing such motifs have been used as treasured gifts passing among friends and colleagues to lubricate the social machinery.
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