Pair of wucai (five-colour) dishes with dragon and phoenix designs, Wanli period (1573-1620), Ming dynasty. Porcelain. Imperial kiln, Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province. Each D: 11 cm. H: 2.2 cm. Purchased from E. T. Chow in 1959. Collection of the University Museum and Art Gallery, The University of Hong Kong© Virtual Collection of Asian Masterpieces, 2013
The five-claw dragon and phoenix designs demonstrate the royal identity of these two saucers.
Both dishes have a six-character reign mark "Da Ming Wanli nian zhi" (Made in the Wanli Period of the Great Ming) on the base. Potters in Jingdezhen produced this kind of high-quality wucai wares for imperial use during the middle and late Ming periods.
Both dishes have a six-character reign mark "Da Ming Wanli nian zhi" (Made in the Wanli Period of the Great Ming) on the base. Potters in Jingdezhen produced this kind of high-quality wucai wares for imperial use during the middle and late Ming periods.