This dish has a narrow, flat everted rim and is decorated with red, turquoise and black enamels. The central motif is known as the 'split pagoda' design in reference to the three-storey pagoda which splits vertically into two halves by a narrow channel. This channel appears to be a route which connects the three pagodas in the oval cell at the bottom to the mountains at the top. Surrounding the central medallion on the inner wall are four red seal impressions alternating with four framed roundels, which contain miniature landscapes.Zhangzhou wares such as this were commonly known as ‘Swatow ware’ due to the erroneous belief that the ware was shipped out from the port of Zhantou (Swatow). These wares were mainly made for export to Japan and Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia, where Chinese ceramics were highly prized.
