The phoenix, reborn

I suppose it was time for a break in my TYW army. Though I'm painting the last minis to finish this army, I felt I had to paint something else. Back in November, Chris, to whom I had sold my lucky Chinese army, had asked me if I could paint a couple of things more to complete his new army: a general and a battlegroup of heavy chariots. Fortunately, I had everything at hand, and I started priming them... Until I stared helplessly at them, not knowing how to paint them. So I put them back in the painting plan, still primed but otherwise untouched. I knew I had time, especially because I couldn't go to the club, my wife coming home very late, and I consequently had to take care of our little daughter. But then, she managed to complete her missions earlier than expected, and now I'm able to go back to my favourite place ;), meaning I have to paint faster to give them to Chris. So, even though I haven't finished the general (though now started), I've just finished the heavy chariots.

 Il me fallait faire une petite pause dans la peinture de mon armee francaise. Meme si je suis en train de peindre les derniers restes, je sentais qu'il fallait que je fasse autre chose. En Novembre dernier, Chris, a qui j'ai vendu mon armee chinoise, voulait ajouter 2-3 trucs a son armee, a savoir un general et une unite de chariots lourds. Heuresuement, j'avais tout sous la main. Cependant, apres les avoir sous-couches, je tombai en panne d'inspiration. Apres tout, j'avais du temps, car je me croyais "bloque" a la maison pour quelque temps encore. Il n'en fut rien, et je peux desormais retourner au club. Il me faut donc accelerer la peinture, pour pouvoir les donner a Chris. Ni une, ni deux, hop voici les chariots.

 

I've named them the bright phoenixes. I already had painted a unit of chariots called the phoenixes. But the latter ones were the "male" poenixes, whereas this new unit are the "female". Just have a look at the characters and you'll see the difference. The Chinese had then three ways of writing "phoenix": male, female, or a combination of the two. I chose to paint them as "female" for a simple reason: Chinese harmony. And, if I recall, when things are harmonious, they are lucky.

So, what you have here are four 4-horses chariots from Museum, with three crewmen in each. I added the the flagpoles and handpainted the flags. 

 J'ai appele ces derniers les phenix flamboyants. Ma precedente unite de chariots s'appelait deja les phenix, mais ces derniers etaient les "males". ceux-ci sont les "femelles", les caracteres sont differents. En effet, les Chinois avaient trois manieres d'ecrire le mot: "male", "femelle", ou une combinaison des deux. J'ai chois la version "femelle" pour une question d'harmonie. Et qui dit harmonie, dit chance, Esperons qu'ils seront chanceux sur un champ de bataille.