This large, blue and white dish has a scrolling foliate design on the rim while the cavetto remains plain. The central motif is decorated with lotus flowers and waterweeds. The dish is painted in a greyish cobalt blue beneath a thick, opaque, greyish white crackled glaze.The production of blue and white ware in large quantities started during the Yuan dynasty (1279-1368) for the Middle Eastern market. By the Ming (1368-1644) dynasty, blue and white wares were produced for the emperor, domestic consumption and for export to many places such as the Philippines, Indonesia and Europe. The late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries saw the deterioration in the quality of Ming porcelain due to huge demands from the imperial court as well as from export trade. Little experimentation occured during this period.
