Height: 14.000 cm
Gift of E.B. Havell
Asia OA 1950.4-3.1
Room 33: Asia
Blue-and-white porcelain jug
From Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, southern
Ming dynasty, early 15th century AD
Tankard with a dragon-shaped handle
The blue-and-white wares of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries often took their shapes from Islamic metalwork. The globular body, tall cylindrical neck and dragon handle of this jug all imitate contemporary metalwork of Timurid Persia.
The crowded decoration of this jug is a feature of early blue-and-white porcelain that continued into the early part of the Ming dynasty. It is very different to the generally more subtle character of Chinese ornament. The motifs used in decorating the jug, however, are still distinctly Chinese, notably the breaking waves on the neck and floral scroll on the body.
The jug probably had a lid, which has been lost.
J. Harrison-Hall, Ming ceramics (London, The British Museum Press, 2001)
S.J. Vainker, Chinese pottery and porcelain, (London, The British Museum Press, 1991)