Dish in the form of a plum blossom with figure watching water fowl

Gardens provided a source for creative inspiration for Chinese poets, calligraphers, and painters, who were frequently portrayed in both natural and cultivated settings. On this finely carved lacquer dish, a seated figure is shown intently gazing at the moving waterfowl and the scenery beyond. While the composition appears to be a generic scene of quiet repose it may have been inspired by the story of the fourth-century calligrapher Wang Xizhi (circa 307-365), who claimed that he learned principles of brush movement by studying the natural mannerisms of swimming geese. The dish, an early example of pictorial lacquers, is also notable for its unusual shape of a five-petal plum blossom. It is framed with a floral border that includes plum, peony, hibiscus, chrysanthemum, and camellia. This type of imagery proved popular on early Ming lacquer dishes and boxes, which were, perhaps, given as imperial gifts to respected members of the scholarly civil service.