WANLI SIX-CHARACTER MARK IN UNDERGLAZE BLUE WITHIN A DOUBLE CIRCLE AND OF THE PERIOD (1573-1620)

Compare two blue and white dishes with Wanli marks that are similarly painted with figural scenes as well as the unusual band of double-gourd scroll in the well, the depiction of the bajixiang on the exterior and the band of classic scroll on the foot, illustrated by J. Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, London, 2001, pp. 319, nos. II:117 and II:118. Discussing no. II:117, the author notes that the dish "illustrates Ming openness to the unity of both Buddhist and Daoist iconography on a single object," which is also true of the present dish.