For eighteen months traveling China I browsed markets looking for that 'quintessential' China souvenir. I finally found it during the last week of my travels in an antique market on Dongtai Lu, one of Shanghai's old shopping streets. Having long adored and owned the poster-versions to put up on my wall, when I saw these carved wooden house guardians I knew I had to buy them. I sat for hours haggling with the store owners, eventually settling on a price half of their original asking. Not more than a week later, browsing Hong Kong's antique shops, I saw similar house guardians selling for twenty times what I purchased mine for. Seen here are two of the four guardians I purchased, the warrior on the left, the sage on the right. Though I am unsure as to the exact date of these carvings, I think they are at least 50-75 years old. The carvings were rescued from a Shaoxing house about to be demolished, a city four hours from Shanghai by train.