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Could someone please tell me what these Kanji characters mean? It is at the bottom of a lovely decorative piece depicting Chinese children celebrating the Fish Lantern Festival and probably dates from around 1970s - 1990s.

光華藝品　-　Guanghua Yipin - Guanghua Arts and Crafts Co.,Ltd
Located in Taoyuan - Taiwan

With regards,
I.Nagy

Thank you very much!!!!

The seal script mark would read down and across from the top right in standard characters as "光華藝品" (Guang-hua yi pin), meaning "Magnificant object of art".

FYI, the term "Kanji" is the Japanese transliteration of "漢字" (Han zi in mandarin pinyin), meaning "Chinese Characters". Seal script is called "Zhuanshu" (篆書) in mandarin Chinese.

Best regards,

Bill H.

Thanks very much Bill  -  It seems that I.Nagy's answer probably applies to this script reading it literally and there are in fact companies by that name, including in Taoyuan - Taiwan, but none seems to be producing related porcelain items.  In other words, I think your interpretation makes more sense and is also typical of items of the kind throughout the region.

Also, thanks for clarifying the use of the term Kanji...

Best regards, Alex

I must cultivate more patience. I glanced at the first couple of Google hits and went to dinner after seeing company production described as LED lighting. Always trust I. Nagy to be the better source in these matters, Alex.

Bill H.

Thanks Bill!! I checked several of the companies with the same name in the region and all seemed to be unrelated - but it sounds like you actually found one that produced ceramics (porcelain)?? Because the closest one was making Crystal etc... Perhaps, I.Nagy means the Exporters by that name?? Sorry, still a bit confused about this... Is it an actual company/manufacturer or just a generic notation we often see on similar items from the Far East (wishes, proverbs, expletives etc)??

Yes, I'd looked again after I. Nagy posted his input, and found that some Chinese language Taiwan business listings had Guanghua involved in decorative ceramics. In the case of their LED lamp business, they apparently were getting ceramic components made in Mainland China for assembly in their Taiwan factory. They seem to have a broad-based line of products. Other information regarding this company is available on Facebook, but I don't subscribe to social networking.

Best regards,

Bill H.

Thanks Bill - we seem to be thinking along the same lines... I also do not partake on Facebook and the like but your explanation along with I.Nagy's expertise and valuable insight points in the direction of the Finisher/Exporter category...

Thanks again and especially to I.Nagy for getting us on the right path from the start!

Alex, all of us in the forum owe a debt of gratitude to I. Nagy for his remarkable language abilities. I just wish to note that you originally requested only the meaning of the characters, something I provided to you directly and accurately. You didn't request the name of the maker, not that I feel motivated to do in-depth gratuitous research for those who overlook the forum's core purpose as a font of shared knowledge by apparently taking it as simply a free translation service.

May this reminder help start you out on another right path.

Bill H.

Hello Bill  -  once again, thank you for your contribution to this question and you are right that I had just asked for the meaning of those characters and you even went a step further by explaining the use of the term "Kanji".  I am sorry if my comments were taken out of context, I was only trying to thank you and also echo your sentiments on I.Nagy's extraordinarily valuable advice regarding this and so many other questions on this forum.  I truly appreciate your help and of all other participants in this group and I can assure you it is not taken for granted.

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