The shape of this bowl is known as mantou xin. It is shallow with a pronounced convex centre painted with a dragon medallion. The well is plain, while the border has a broad band painted with a dragon and a phoenix. The exterior is painted with four fish divided by four lotus sprays, and the underside has a blue Jiajing six-character mark within a double circle.

Literature: Anthony du Boulay, The Duberly Collection of Chinese Art at Winchester College (Winchester, 2019), p. 30

Provenance: Bequeathed as part of the Duberly Collection, 1978; purchased by Major Montagu and Lady Eileen Duberly from the collection of John F. Woodthorpe, sold Sotheby’s, London, 6 April 1954, lot 20 (£38)

Location: Treasury, Gallery 2