A rare large Chinese blue and white dish Yongle (1403-1424)

finely potted with gently rounded sides rising from a low tapered foot to a broad, everted rim, painted on the inside in rich tones of underglaze cobalt, enhanced with pronounced heaping and piling, with an elegantly arranged flowering peony spray issuing two fully opened blooms alongside smaller buds amongst scrolling, serrated leaves, all enclosed by a double-line border and encircled on the incurved well by a continuous peony meander with a narrow band of classic scroll to the rim, the underside further decorated with scrolling lotus, the recessed base unglazed in a pale orange tone, 37.8cm diameter, The present dish exemplifies the quality and simple vigour that characterises Jingdezhen blue and white porcelain of the Yongle period, with the peony spray expertly painted and positioned that is aesthetically most pleasing. The design appears to spread into the surrounding space with rhythmic dynamism. Dishes of this type were made for the court as well as for the export market, transported mainly to the Middle East via the great naval expeditions of Admiral Zhenghe. Large dishes painted on the interior with two peonies were equally popular in China as abroad. Five dishes of this design from the Ardebil Shrine and now in the Archaeological Museum of Iran, Teheran, are recorded in John Alexander Pope, 'Chinese Porcelains from the Ardebil Shrine', 1956, pl. 32, no. 29.67-71. Dishes of this design but with floral rim are preserved in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in 'The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Blue and White Porcelain with Underglaze Red (I)', Hong Kong, 2008, pl. 55. For comparable dishes offered at auction, see Sotheby’s, Hong Kong, 28 November 1978, lot 63, subsequently sold at the same auction house on 30 October 2000, lot 105. Further related examples were sold at Sotheby’s, London, 13 December 1960, lot 67, and 5 November 2014, lot 17, and Sotheby’s, Hong Kong, 5 May 2026, lot 808. Compare also a related dish in the Minneapolis Institute of Art, accession no. 2003.140.1. 明永乐 青花缠枝牡丹纹大盘, Condition Report, Condition Report, Riveted and professionally restored, small glaze chips around rim. Request A Condition Report, Request A Condition Report

Estimate:£40,000

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