Chinese Swatow dish with pagoda landscape – late Ming, ca. 1600

An atmospheric Swatow dish, made in the kilns of Zhangzhou in southern China at the end of the Ming dynasty (circa 1580–1640). In the centre a pagoda in a river landscape with bamboo and rocks; cloud and treasure motifs on the lobed rim. Kiln sand still adheres to the foot ring, a hallmark of this rough, lively export porcelain. Swatow is the loose, painterly counterpart to the refined Kraak porcelain. The brushwork is free and expressive, and the blue is a soft greyish blue. Underneath the dish are old collection labels: this piece has passed through collectors’ hands for generations. Very beautiful in a wabi sabi interior, next to old oak and linen, or in a classic interior with other early Asian porcelain. Also a real eye-catcher on a stand on a bookcase. Condition: Good for its age. The lobed rim has small frits (small rim chips) all round, as with virtually all Swatow ware. Kiln sand on the foot ring, light scratches in the glaze on the underside and old collectors’ labels under the base. No hairline cracks visible.