The dishes are covered inside and out with even pale yellow glazes. The bases have the six-character reign marks of Jiajing in blue within double rings under bluish white glazes. They still bear the fine yellow of the Zhengde period and must be early in the reign of Jiajing. The better example from this pair is one of the finest surviving examples of an imperial yellow dish.

Literature: Anthony du Boulay, The Duberly Collection of Chinese Art at Winchester College (Winchester, 2019), pp. 46-47

Provenance: Bequeathed as part of the Duberly Collection, 1978; purchased by Major Montagu and Lady Eileen Duberly from John Sparks, 8 August 1953 (£185); formerly in the collection of E.G. Kostelany, sold Sotheby’s, London, 3 March 1953, lots 147 and 148

Location: Treasury, Gallery 2