This finely-painted blue and white dish has a central scene featuring a trio of music-playing Europeans in a garden setting. The design is derived from an engraving by a French artist, Nicolas Bonnart (1646–1718), who based it on a print by his brother, Robert Bonnart. This print is one of a number of French costume prints portraying women with elaborate hair styles that were in vogue at the time. Surrounding this main design are eight panels featuring Chinese-style landscapes. This combination of Chinese and European elements highlights the exchanges between the two regions. It also illustrates the Western fascination with the East as such dishes were likely to have been commissioned by European traders for export to their home countries.
