A LARGE JAPANESE ARITA BLUE AND WHITE DISH

A LARGE JAPANESE ARITA BLUE AND WHITE DISH

EDO PERIOD, LATE 17TH CENTURY

Decorated in underglaze blue with three leafy sprays to the well, the cavetto with a border of chrysanthemum and peonies, the rim painted with a band of waves; the reverse with scrolling tendrils and a Chinese six-character mark reading Da Ming Chenghua nian zhi, 31.4cm.

Provenance: from the collection of the late Gas Kimishima, wood-fire potter and specialist in the ancient kilns of Japan, purchased in Japan and thence by descent. Gas established his studio in England and built his own anagama kiln in Tring, Hertfordshire.