A CHINESE CANTON FAMILLE ROSE PORCELAIN DISH
China, Canton, made for the Persian export market, dated 1300 AH (1883 AD)

Resting on a disc foot, featuring fine gilded and enamelled painted decoration with birds perched on blossoming branches within four cartouches bordered by a key-fret motif, set against a white ground densely decorated with Chinese auspicious symbols. The border decoration in reserve against a gilded ground with roses and vegetal elements. The centre with a medallion inscribed in Persian: Farmayesh Djenab Hadji Agha Bozorg Tadjer Sdirazi, Sana 1300 (By order of His Excellency Haji Agha Bozorg, merchant of Shiraz, year 1300).

Porcelain made for the Persian market often bears inscriptions in Persian, the names of patrons, and dates from the Qajar period, suggesting that affluent clients ordered these wares directly from Canton (present day Guangzhou) workshops or acquired them through intermediaries active in the Indian Ocean trade. Typically decorated in the famille rose palette with floral and bird motifs enriched with gilding, these pieces demonstrate how Chinese craftsmen tailored their ornamental language to suit Persian aesthetic.

6cm high, 33.2cm diameter