The deep dish is painted with mythical creatures and floral sprays in the characteristic 'Swatow' palette of red, green, turquoise and black enamels. It is unique for its decoration which is rendered over the entire surface of the dish. It is in contrast to the typical arrangement of patterns on Zhangzhou ceramics which sees motifs arranged in separate segments--at the centre, in the cavetto and along the rim. Zhangzhou ware was commonly known as ‘Swatow ware’ due to the previously-held (but mistaken) belief that this type of ceramics was shipped out from the port of Shantou (Swatow) in Guangdong province. They are typically painted with bold decoration, heavily potted and have bases with grit adhering to them. These wares were mainly made for export to Japan and Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia and the Philippines. Chinese ceramics were highly prized in these places and were used extensively by the nobility and the elite as status symbols.
