Blue and White Jar with Figures and Horses beneath Willows, Ming Dynasty

PP-0097

Description

A large blue and white porcelain jar with a short upright neck, a broad rounded shoulder and sides tapering to a slightly flared foot. The neck is painted with a band of crested waves and the shoulder with a frieze of scrolling flowers and foliage. The main band shows figures in a landscape beneath hanging willow branches: a groom leading a horse on a rope through tall grass, an armoured, bearded figure seated on a platform, and a standing attendant with a sword at his waist, among banana plants and tufts of grass. Below runs a band of panels, each enclosing a trefoil above a dot.

The greyish-white glaze is crackled overall, and the blue is deep, with darker spots where it gathered. The base is unglazed and flat, showing an orange-brown body with concentric throwing rings. The jar is attributed to the early Ming.