The dishes in this set of five are modelled in the form of recumbent pigs, decorated in underglaze cobalt blue. The features of the pigs are outlined in dark blue and molded in relief, while a lighter blue wash has been used to shade the tails, ears, and hooves. Small, curved lines imitate fur. Some of the glaze has worn away on the rims of the dishes, a feature known as mushikui (“moth-eaten edges” in Japanese). The dishes are part of an amusing group of food dishes known as mukozuke. Mukozuke were used during the meal that accompanied the Japanese tea ceremony and were made in a wide variety of forms, including fish, oxen, leaves, and other beguiling shapes. Made in China to Japanese taste, usually in sets of five or ten, they formed part of the trade in blue and white porcelain (ko-sometsuke) between Japan and China that began in the 1620’s, following the death of the Wanli Emperor (d. 1619), who had in life forbidden legal trade between the two countries.
