The dishes have a shallow well and flat rim, and are raised on a circular foot ring. The central scene in each shows a single Immortal and his attendant in a landscape setting. A border of lotus flowers and scrolling leaves – in black enamel, heightened with gilded details – frames the view, and the rim decoration alternates between an octagonal diaper design and panels of flower sprigs. The reverse is enamelled in a light ruby ground, with a single fruit and floral spray to the centre against a white ground, within a scalloped edged panel.

provenance
Mrs Elizabeth Halsey Dock.

published
‘Chinese Painted Enamels of the 18th Century’, The Chinese Porcelain Company, 1993 – plate 24.

A similar pair with ruby backs – but square in shape – are illustrated in ‘Chinese Painted Enamels’ by Michael Gillingham, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, 1978 – plate 67.