Vase
Category
Ceramics
Date
circa 1700 - 1720
Materials
Porcelain, with blue underglaze
Measurements
355 x 210 mm
Place of origin
Jingdezhen
Order this imageCollection
Osterley Park and House, London
NT 771398
Summary
Jar and cover, porcelain, of baluster shape, painted in underglaze blue with flowering prunus blossoms on a cracked ice ground, China, Jingdezhen, ca. 1700-20.
Full description
This Chinese design is emblematic of the New Year, when prunus blossoms falls onto the frozen lakes as the ice begins to thaw and crack. Jars were filled with sweetmeats and given as gifts at New Year's.