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Figure
Unknown - Enlarge image
Figure
- Place of origin:
Jingdezhen, China (made)
- Date:
1680-1700 (made)
- Artist/Maker:
Unknown (production)
- Materials and Techniques:
Porcelain, decorated in underglaze cobalt blue
- Credit Line:
Bequeathed by Basil Ionides
- Museum number:
C.7&A-1951
- Gallery location:
On Display
Object Type
The figure is made from porcelain painted under the glaze with blue and red pigments. It is very similar to the English figure of No-body also displayed in the British Galleries (museum no. C.4&A-1982)
Trading
The arrival of Portuguese ships in East Asian waters in 1514 signalled the beginning of new trading opportunities for European merchants. By the early 18th century, Chinese goods were widely available in Britain, the trade being dominated, on the English side, by the East India Company.
People
On his death in 1951 Basil Ionides, who came from a great Manchester family of museum benefactors, bequeathed his collection of Chinese porcelain in the European manner to the V&A. This figure was part of that bequest.
