Dimensions: Height 6,5 cm Wide 41 cm Depth 41 cm
Weight: 2663 grams

The dish is finely painted in famille verte enamels with a central scene of five elderly scholars gathered in a garden setting beneath a flowering tree. The figures are engaged in scholarly pursuits, with a brushpot, scrolls, and other scholar’s objects placed before them, while an attendant kneels nearby holding a vase. Their long beards, flowing robes, and contemplative postures emphasise their status as embodiments of wisdom and learning.

The border is richly decorated with a continuous band of scrolling peony and chrysanthemum among dense foliage, rendered in green, iron-red, and turquoise enamels, with gilt highlights. The reverse is undecorated apart from a clear glaze pooling to a light celadon tone near the footrim.

Such dishes were popular during the Daoguang reign and reflect both the literati ideals of retirement and study in nature, and the auspicious wish for longevity and wisdom