Dish
Category
Ceramics
Date
1700 - 1720
Materials
Porcelain, cobalt
Measurements
255 mm (Diameter)
Place of origin
Jingdezhen
Order this imageCollection
Saltram, Devon
NT 871082
Summary
Dish, porcelain, round with everted rim, made in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province, China, Kangxi period (1662–1722), early 18th century, decorated in underglaze blue with an image of a carp and a dragon rising from waves, the rim with waves and rosettes reserved in white against the blue.
Full description
The image on this dish refers to the belief that carp who managed to swim up the Dragon Gate rapids in Hunan supposedly turned into dragons. This was also regarded as a metaphor for something achieved through hard work and perseverance (Bjaaland Welch 2008). A similarly decorated dish is in the collection of Berwick Museum and Art Gallery, inv. no. BERMG 256.
Provenance
Recorded as provenance unknown post 1957.
References
Bjaaland Welch 2008: Patricia Bjaaland Welch, Chinese Art: A Guide to Motifs and Visual Imagery, Tokyo, Rutland (Vermont) and Singapore, 2008, pp. 97-8