UBC LIBRARY BLOGGERS

This blog post is a special edition of RBSC’s series spotlighting items in the Phil Lind Klondike Gold Rush Collection and the Wallace B. and Madeline H. Chung Collection.

Happy Lunar New Year from the Chung Lind Gallery and the whole UBC Rare Books and Special Collections team! We wish everyone safe, healthy, and an auspicious year of the wood snake.

Chinese New Year celebrations have been a part of BC’s history and culture for at least over 150 years, enlivening both big cities and small towns with the sound of firecrackers, the rainbow colors of parades, bright red decorations, and the scent of special foods wafting in the air. There are many traditions and customs that vary both from region to region in China, but also family to family. Of the many traditions brought by the older waves of migration (lo wah kieu 老華僑), the visiting of flower markets (花市) and the cultivation of special lucky plants in the heart of the winter was and is cherished. One of the most prized plants was the Chinese Lily (水仙花), which is actually not a lily at all! This plant will be the topic of our celebratory blog today.

New Year’s Day in San Francisco’s Chinatown. 1881. Theodore Wores, artist. Oil paint on canvas. Collection of Oakland Museum of California. Gift of Dr. A. Jess Shenon.

Known by many names, including the bunch-flowered daffodil, Chinese sacred lily, cream narcissus, and joss flower, Narcissus Tazetta was brought to North America by Chinese workers during the California Gold Rush. The plant itself is native to the Mediterranean and was brought to China along the Silk Road before the Tang Dynasty.  The early Chinese migrants to North American called it Sui Sin Fa “Water Fairy Flower,” a name likely derived from the Greek myth of Narcissus, which gave the flower its English name. Bulbs of the beautiful, highly fragrant flower were grown in Zhangzhou 漳州 Fujian 福建 and exported to Chinese communities all around the world. From there, it can be found naturalized in the fields, abandoned gardens, and Chinese cemeteries wherever Chinese were found in North America and wherever climate permits.

Yuen Fong Co. Ltd. 元豐公司. Nov 1962. “元蘴公司 = Yuen Fong co. ltd.” Iss 18. Vancouver, BC. UBC RBSC Wallace B. and Madeline H Chung Collection. CC-TX-307-1. Pg.1

The flower was prized because of its tight bunches of blooms and strong scent that grew when planted in shallow dishes in late October-Early November; they would ideally bloom right as Chinese New Year began. Multiple blooms from one bulb also had symbolism of plenty and abundance. They decorated homes, businesses, altars, and even photo studios, where they were used as a lucky prop for portraits sent back home during the New Year celebrations.[i]

In this formal portrait, likely the son of a wealthy merchant, notice the Chinese lilies to the side.
Unknown Photographer. 1910. “Chinese Boy.” UBC RBSC Wallace B. and Madeline H Chung Collection. CC-PH-00269 doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.14288/1.0217964.

In BC, the flowers are found as early as the 1890s, though they most likely arrived earlier. In 1892, The Victoria Daily Times shared that the pet goat of a “well-known and justly popular saloon-keeper” had perished after eating a Chinese lily bulb gifted to the family by an employee for the new year.[ii] During the Chinese New Year season, Chinese servants would demand (and receive) vacation time, Chinese societies and social clubs would gather for banquets, and family businesses would give out gifts to partners, customers, and friends. The flowers and bulbs of the lily were very popular, leading to the following quote:

“Genii of the Water: All those who have visited the Chinese during the New Year festivities have noticed the sweet-scented flowers of the Chinese water lily, shin sin fa, water sprite flower, or water genii flower, which the Chinese always have in full bloom at their New Year. These, with branches of almond blossoms, pomelos and oranges, artificial flowers of paper and tinsel, a Chinese dragon embroidered in gold on a silken cloth, form the principal decorations of the Chinese New Year’s table, while upon it are Chinese candies, sugared fruits, laichis (Chinese nuts), and watermelon seeds, all in a lacquered box, called tsun hop, or complete box. These confections, and tea, wine and tobacco, are offered to all callers.”[iii]

By 1902, the plant was so popular among the non-Chinese community that a full page spread about how best to raise them was published in the Vancouver Daily News Advertiser. Ads for the bulbs were found prominently printed in the November issues of Chinatown Vancouver import-export businesses up to the 1970s, including the ad with instructions below.

Yuen Fat Wah Jung Co. 元發公司. Nov 1954. “Yuen Fat Wah Jung co. = 元發公司” Vancouver, BC. UBC RBSC Wallace B. and Madeline H Chung Collection. CC-TX-307-26

We wish you all a happy new year!

花開富貴   瑞氣呈祥

Further Reading

Hodgeson, Larry. “The Little Bulb That Conquered China” November 8 2017, Laidback Gardener Blog. https://laidbackgardener.blog/2017/11/08/the-little-bulb-that-conquered-china/

Footnotes

[i] Adams, John D. Chinese Victoria: A Long and Difficult Journey. Victoria, BC: Discover the Past, 2022.

[ii] The Victoria Daily Times Feb 15 1892 Pg.5

[iii] Vancouver Daily World, March 23 1901, Pg.2