The design is traditionally known as ‘Liberty and Matrimony’. In European art, a caged bird was a familiar symbol of chastity and virginity; the open cage accompanying the courting couple therefore lent the scene an amorous, and subtly erotic, meaning. The composition derives from Jean-Baptiste Pater’s Le Dénicheur d’Oiseaux (‘The Bird Hunter’). Howard and Ayers refer to the European prototype as ‘The Bird Seller’, while suggesting that the allegorical title ‘The Tender Trap’ more aptly conveys its meaning.

Ref.:
- An identical saucer with handled cup in the Royal Museums of Art and History is illustrated by C. Jörg in 'Chinese Export Porcelain. Chine de Commande from the Royal Museums of Art and History in Brussels', pp. 198-199, no. 75, inv. no. V 1050.
- A near-identical set is illustrated by Williamson in 'The Book of Famille Rose', pl. XIV.
- Howard and Ayers, 'China for the West', vol. II, p. 350, no. 349.