According to the artist, Sharon Eisley:

The idiom means "the best of the best", or "the rareist". In Mandarin it sounds like shu yi shu ar (like "shoe E shoe R"). But although there are different tongues in chinese they all would write it the same and know what it means- so say if someone who speaks cantonese sees it they'll still be able to read it but when they pronounce it it would sound like they were gargling a live cat- totally different. Its a fairly common idium- some of my chinese friends knew it and some didn't, as with all idiums.

Sharon Rose Eisley (of Syrinx Design) spent quite a few years in Taiwan studying chinese brush painting and Mandarin. She now works as an illustrator/ artist in California combining western and eastern techniques.

She can be contacted at:

shorman@jps.net