A Chinese lacquered tray, Ming dynasty. Photo Dreweatts & Bloomsbury Auctions

of canted, rectangular form, inlaid with mother of pearl with a central panel depicting dignitaries and their attendants beneath pines and willow trees in the garden of a lake side retreat, all within formal bands, inscribed with the sides with a diaper ground and set with quatre-lobed panels of cranes and willows, 39.2cm long. Estimate £1,000-1,500

明 仿黑漆嵌螺钿人物图纹长方盤

Dreweatts & Bloomsbury Auctions. Chinese Ceramics and Asian Works of Art. 17th May 2014. http://www.dreweatts.com/