Lobed box with dragon, Ming dynasty, Longqing mark and period, AD1567–72. Porcelain with underglaze cobalt-blue decoration, Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province. Sir Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art, PDF A656 © Trustees of the British Museum.

Small covered porcelain box. Seven rounded lobes with star-shaped top and foot. Underglaze blue with dual fruit and flower sprays. Narrow band of classic scrolls above and below central junction. Frontal five-clawed dragon amid clouds on top. There is an inscription on the base.

Note: Government kilns had access to the finest raw materials including imported cobalt. Imported cobalt is far superior to the blue pigment found locally to Jingdezhen in, for example, Leping 樂平 and Ruizhou 瑞州. After grinding for a long time, it appeared almost deep purple when fired beneath a transparent blue-tinged glaze. The form of this box is very unusual. Longqing (AD1567–72) ceramics are particularly rare as the emperor only reigned for six years. Stylistically they relate closely to Jiajing and Wanli imperial wares.