D0897 Large Imari Dish

Large Imari Dish Delft, circa 1710 Marked APK for Pieter Kocx, the owner of De Grieksche A (The Greek A) factory from 1701 to 1703, or his widow Johanna van der Heul, the owner of the factory from 1703 to 1722 Painted with a Zotje (Dancing or Foolish boy) walking toward Lange Lijs (Lange Lijs) holding a tray and standing amidst birds and flitting insects, a table set with vases of flowers, a garden fence, a pagoda beyond tasseled drapery, and flowering peony branches. DIMENSIONS Diameter: 34.5 cm. (13.6 in.) PROVENANCE The Dr. Günther Grethe Collection, Hamburg NOTE The scene on this dish might be inspired by the story of Xi Wang Mu. Xi Wang Mu, often translated as the Queen Mother of the West, is a prominent goddess in Chinese mythology and Daoist tradition. She is associated with immortality, divine authority, and the natural world. Traditionally depicted as a regal and elegant woman, Xi Wang Mu resides in a paradisiacal garden on the western mountains, surrounded by magical creatures, attendants, and sacred plants. She is often shown with peaches of immortality, flowers, or ritual objects in her hands, symbolizing longevity and spiritual power. Her mythology blends cosmic and earthly realms, and she frequently appears in art and literature as a figure of grace, authority, and mystical beauty. SIMILAR EXAMPLES This popular design is most commonly found in smaller diameters, making this size quite rare. Another, but larger (40 cm./15.75 in.) example with the same decoration is part of the collection of the Kunstmuseum The Hague (inv. no. 0400276). A different variant is a ribbed bowl marked APK, featuring the same decoration in the collection of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, with a smaller diameter of 26 cm.(10.2 in.) (inv. no. BK-NM-12400-301).