Vase and Cover
Delft, Netherlands, c. 1675–1680
Attributed to the Greek A. Factory, 1658–1722
Tin-glazed earthenware
In form and decoration this exceptionally large vase echoes Chinese blue-and-white porcelains imported into Europe in the seventeenth century. The Delft painter, however, combined Chinese ornamental motifs with figural scenes taken from European prints of travels to the Far East, one of which shows the Chinese emperor seated on a throne, flanked by attendants, a globe of the world at his feet. This composition is adapted from a plate in a volume of engravings describing a trade mission undertaken by the Dutch East India Company to China in 1655. The volume was published in Amsterdam in 1665 and subsequently in foreign language editions, among them an English translation, An Embassy from the East-India Company of the United Provinces, to the Grand Tartar Cham Emperor of China.