TRIANG, Pahang: There is an unusual man in Triang who is crazy about collecting countless of dishes, treating them as if they are priceless treasures!

Involved in the hardware business for more than 40 years, Luo Fu Sheng has been able to collect lots of dishes for more than 20 years due to his job. Among the countless dishes collected by him, some are more than 50 to 60 years old while many are no longer in production today.

Talking about his collection, Luo said he had over 30 different types of bowls in his collection, some with auspicious words printed on them. Sure enough, there are some auspicious designs printed on the dishes such as dragon, fish, peony with exquisite craft that would enhance their artistic values.

Among other items in his collection are a holy grail and a 3½-inch tiny bowl.

Giving away bowls as presents

During an interview with Sin Chew Daily, Luo said it was very common for people to give away dishes, bowls, spoons and chopsticks with the word shou (longevity) printed on them as birthday gifts for elderly people during the 1970's and 80's.

Dishes were also given away as gifts to guests, and this has become a traditional Cantonese custom with an implication of blessing that the recipient would be able to make an easy living.

Many people are familiar with rooster bowls, and the dashing rooster design on these bowls has been deeply ingrained in the minds of many people. Luo said many food caterers are still looking for rooster bowls today.

Porcelain dishes increasingly common

He recalled that during the 70's and 80's, plastic dishes were uncommon as the public were accustomed to porcelain dishes. There was once a customer at a coffee shop who threw the plastic spoon in his cup on the floor and yelled in protest that plastic was harmful to people's health.

Due to increased health consciousness, many people have nowadays given up plastic dishes in favour of porcelain ones.

Luo also has in his collection a 4-inch tall Chinese vase, a gold-plated steamboat, six porcelain pots, four boccaro pots, five sets of plastic and porcelain Fu Lu Shou (Happiness, Prosperity and Longevity) statues.

Luo said we must identify our own collecting hobbies and cultivate them. For instance, some people like to collect antiques while he has a preference for collecting dishes.

He added, although many people might not appreciate the value of his collection as the things he has collected are very common, they would become more and more precious in time to come, and this is where the true meaning of collection lies! (Translated by LIM LIY EE/Sin Chew Daily)