These form part of a series of dishes bearing the arms of the provinces and cities of the Netherland, including those territories under French or Austrian control, and those of France and England. At least twenty-three different arms are known and the fact that they were all made to Dutch order accounts for the spelling of the names. This series is probably the earliest of several bearing these arms; the later ones have differing border patterns. Cf. D. Howard and J. Ayers, op. cit., pp. 118-119, where plates inscribed with Holland and Engelandt are illustrated. The author suggests that these plates were probably made for display rather than personal or official use. Cf. M. Beurdeley, op. cit., p. 189, cat. 169 for a Friesland dish and D. F. Lunsingh Scheurleer, op. cit., pl. G for a Zutphen dish.
C. le Corbeiller, op. cit., p. 38 illustrates an almost identical though larger, Artoys dish