These lotus-leaf shaped water-dropper has a tiny crab applied to the centre, with a spout in the form of a hollow stem on the exterior, intended to drain water from an aperture hidden just beneath the crab. Although an ingenious design, it is reportedly a rather leaky pouring vessel and could equally have functioned as a brush-washer or an intriguing decorative piece.Dehua, located on the southeast coast of Fujian province, is well known for its production of white porcelain, known to Europeans as 'blanc de Chine'. The earliest Dehua porcelain was produced as early as the 14th century but the production and quality of these porcelain peaked around the 17th and 18th centuries.
