Birds

清朝濦粷紙水粉繪挛

Pith painting refers to a form of painting with watercolors; specifically, it involves applying gouache to pith paper. Gouache is watercolors with an added white pigment; pith paper is derived from the pith of the Tetrapanax papyrifera plant (Chinese: tongcao) and has been erroneously perceived as "rice paper" due to its thin, brittle, and translucent qualities.

The three groups of paintings in this case are representative of three of most popular subject matter; another was figures, which remained a staple throughout the 1800s. A remarkable feature of pith paintings was their sole purpose for sale to Western customers either as export art or tourist souvenirs. According to their size, all of these paintings date no earlier than 1850 when the small album format was en vogue: twelve sheets were bound together in an "accordion" style, with each sheet trimmed in blue ribbon.