Porcelain with underglaze cobalt-blue decoration, Six-character Xuande mark

China , Ming Dynasty (1426-1435)

Dimensions: Height 3,7 cm / Wide 15,3 cm Depth 15,3 cm

Weight: 269,3 grams

Porcelain dish with blue and white underglaze. The lip, well and outside of the plate are painted with peonie flowers and floral sprays.

Shallow porcelain dish. Underglaze blue with a band of scrolling lotus flowers around sides and inside cavetto. Roundel with lotus flower and leaves in centre. There is an inscription on the base.

The Xuande Emperor dispatched officials to directly supervise the manufacture of court-ordered porcelains at the imperial kilns in Jingdezhen. Craftsmen at Jingdezhen thoroughly processed the local clay to remove any impurities. This resulted in highly refined clay which was purer, whiter, and finer in the early fifteenth century than in any other period of the Ming dynasty.

Compare: British Museum , Registration number PDF,A.677