Delft – large Wanli style dish, late 17th century

Fine Delftware dish painted in cobalt blue on tin-glazed faience. The rim is decorated with eight lotus leaf-shaped reserves, reflecting Chinese decorative conventions, alternating depictions with floral motifs and auspicious symbols executed in the delicate Wanli ‘Kraak’ style.

The central medallion displays, as its main motif, a typical design from the Wanli period: a large vase filled with blossoming branches. A bird and insects accompany the composition, enhancing the naturalistic scene.

While the dish’s form and decoration closely resemble Chinese Ming porcelain, it is made of earthenware. Chinese porcelain was highly prized in the Netherlands, and when production in China temporarily ceased due to civil unrest, Delft potters began producing earthenware in the style of Chinese porcelain. This dish exemplifies the Dutch adaptation of Oriental motifs, reflecting both aesthetic appreciation and technical ingenuity in late 17th-century Delftware inspired by Ming porcelain.

Condition: Good overall condition for its age, with usual chipping and wear on the outer rim. A restored hairline extends up to the centre (see UV-light picture).

Size:
38  cm diameter (15 inches)