Bowl. China, Yuan dynasty.

Porcelain with cobalt blue décor under a clear glaze. 5-1/8 x 12 x 12 in. (13.0 x 30.5 x 30.5 cm). Gift of Ruth and Bruce Dayton. AN: 2001.201.19. The Minneapolis Institute of Arts

Following the Mongol conquest of China in 1279, the ceramic industry became heavily influenced by foreign trade. The newly invented underglaze blue decoration, for instance, was fueled by supplies of cobalt oxide imported at great expense from the Middle East. This innovative new ware, with its brilliant blue designs, permanently protected under a clear glaze, represented the most advanced ceramic in the world and it was soon being shipped to most major cities and foreign capitals. Immensely popular, Chinese blue-and-white soon became the most recognizable ceramic in the world and continues to be exported to the present day.

Discovered in Vietnam, this large bowl was part of the early trade in blue-and-white initiated by the Mongols.