Dish with samurai. Porcelain. Possibly Imari, Japan, 19th century.
With markings on the base.
Glazed ceramic deep plate decorated with a composition in blue on white on the outside (three phoenixes with six tails alternated with simple floral compositions, and with two stripes above and below) and multicolored on the inside (a procession with an important samurai or shogun, accompanied by a few soldiers, traveling through a natural landscape with flowers, rocks and tree branches, and a series of areas highlighted with a particular background of geometric elements, birds and clouds in a striking tone; the composition is framed by a band with a zigzag line and floral elements in the triangular spaces that it leaves, a strip similar to one on the outside of the piece).
The composition of the interior, as usual, is reminiscent of details of both Japanese ceramics and the world of ukiyo-e: the flag or banner carried by one of the soldiers has an emblem (also present in some garments of the important rider of the match, the which carries arrows, bow, etc.) that recalls some Japanese “mon” (Tosa clan, etc.), the figures, their armor ... Likewise, it is possible to appreciate details of Chinese ceramics, porcelain and art (rocks, motifs, etc.), among which the markings on the base should be highlighted, more similar to examples from the Ming dynasty of the Chenghua period than to contemporary Japanese works.
In the West, it is known as "Imari porcelain" to a production usually decorated with bright colors made in Arita for export in large quantities, especially between the second half of the seventeenth century and the first half of the eighteenth century, although trade continued until, even, century XX. The name is due to the port of Imari, from which the pieces were sent to Nagasaki, where the Dutch East India Company and China had trading posts; In the West, the colored pieces used to be called “Imari”, others were known as “kakiemon”, and those decorated in blue and white “Arita”. Typically blue goes under the glaze, and other details (red, gold, black in outlines, etc.) are added over the glaze (sometimes the different styles of decoration on the glaze of Kakiemon and Kutani are also included within the ceramic or porcelain "Imari" -in the Western sense of the term-). Their popularity led to them being copied in both China and Europe (Delft in the Netherlands at first; next, “Imari” and “Kakiemon” designs and colors were taken as inspiration in early orientalizing pieces produced in Meissen or Chantilly, and later in Vincennes. , Vienna, etc .; the early 19th century production of the Worcester porcelain by Robert Chamberlain, and that of the Royal Crown Derby Porcelain Compani, where Imari-style designs are still popular today are also often noted; remember also masters such as Cornelis Pronk and his Chinese-influenced designs, or the arrival of ukiyo-e in Europe)."
· Size: 62x62x9 cms.
ANTIQUES
