Title
Pair of lanterns
Year/Period
19th century
Region
Malacca
Dimension
Object size: Refer to parts.
Accession No.
2018-00813
Collection of
This is a cylindrical-shaped lantern bearing the surname of the household. On one side of the lantern bears the Chinese characters ‘Chen Fu’ (陈府), indicating that it belongs to the Chen family. The other side bears auspicious images and symbols of Chinese culture. It is also marked with the Chinese characters ‘Tai Xing’ (泰兴), a city in China, which is the region that the surname originates from. Surname lanterns are commonly used by Peranakan Chinese and are hung in front of the house during festive occassions to honour the ancestors and to remind the family of their roots.
