Dish with design of mandarin fish

Detail of a pattern
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At A Glance

  • Period

    mid 14th century
  • Geography

    Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, China
  • Material

    Porcelain with cobalt pigment under colorless glaze
  • Dimension

    H x Diam: 8 × 45.5 cm (3 1/8 × 17 15/16 in)
  • Accession Number

    F1971.3
  • EDAN ID

    edanmdm:fsg_F1971.3

Object Details

  • Description

    Dish with flattened rim. Blue-and-white.
    Clay: fine white porcelain.
    Glaze: transparent and colorless
    Foot: Unglazed
    Decoration: in underglaze blue, a mandarin fish among water weeds in center; lotus scroll in and outside cavetto; wave pattern on rim. Unglazed base.
    (L.A. Cort, November 1991) In decoration "large" is changed to "mandarin" in describing the fish.
    (Jan Stuart, 6/3/2020) I added "colorless" to the glaze description and added "Foot: unglazed."
  • Collection

    Freer Gallery of Art Collection
  • Exhibition History

    Chinese Ceramics: 13th–14th Century (December 20, 2014 to January 3, 2016)
    Iraq and China: Ceramics, Trade, and Innovation (December 4, 2004 to July 17, 2005)
    Crosscurrents in Chinese and Islamic Ceramics (March 1, 1996 to July 1, 1997)
    On the River (April 01, 1995 to January 23, 1996)
    Chinese Ceramics (March 15, 1982 to July 10, 1986)
    A Decade of Discovery: Selected Acquisitions 1970-1980 (November 9, 1979 to May 22, 1980)
    Chinese Ceramics (April 11, 1978 to September 4, 1980)
    Chinese Art (January 1, 1963 to March 6, 1981)
  • Origin

    Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, China
  • Credit Line

    Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
  • Type

    Vessel
  • Restrictions and Rights

    Usage Conditions Apply

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