Depicted here are the generals of the Tang Dynasty emperor Tang Taizong （唐太宗）. The generals are popular representations of Military Door Gods. The looks of a pair of Military Door Gods are usually contrasting. Yuchi Gong, depicted in the left print, looks fierce as compared to Qin Qiong. They face each other in order to prevent spirits from passing through the doors. Most ‘Chinese New Year prints’ (年画, nianhua) are printed on plain backgrounds. Only some prints from the famous ‘nianhua’ production village, Yangliuqing, have complicated background designs. The repeated motifs of a bottle-gourd （葫芦, hulu）are a pun for ‘bliss’ and ‘emolument’ (福禄, fulu). Together with the Chinese character for double happiness (囍, xi), the design suggests ‘double blessings in both bliss and emolument’ (福禄双喜, fulu shuangxi). Gold is also applied in this pair of prints.
