This plate was part of a large dinner service ordered by the Dutch East Indies Company (VOC). The design is based on the reverse of a silver coin called a ducaton, first issued in 1728 in the Netherlands for use only in the Dutch East Indies. The crowned arms of the United Netherlands is in the centre, surrounded by a Latin inscription: CON-CORDIA RES PARVAE CRESCUNT – "Unity makes strength" (liter-ally "small things flourish in concord”). This was the motto of the Dutch Republic, and used on many Dutch coins. In designing the plate, despite having the actual coin as a model, the Chinese potters gave the European lions a distinct Asian interpreta-tion. The inscriptions show they also had some trouble with the letters of the motto. The Dutch minted these "silver rider" (zilveren rijder) ducatons from 1659 till 1798, so-called for the knight on horseback on the front. The ones with the VOC monogram were issued between 1728 and 1751. As a trade coin, the familiar design of the "silver rider" helped the Dutch compete against well-known contemporary coins like the Span-ish dollar.
