The dish is cleverly decorated with branches bearing peaches; the design carrying over the rim to the back. The design seems to have been in use over a hundred years or so, certainly Kangxi examples are published. The absence of a mark on this example makes it difficult to give a certain date but early 19th century, perhaps Jiaqing would be my cautious assessment though equally it could be Qianlong.

A virtually identical dish but with a Jiaqing mark was included in the Christie’s Hong Kong auction of 19th March 1991, (sold for HK$24,200).

The foot-rim is rounded in section, the porcelain paste quite smooth and the enamels thickly applied. You can see in some of the photographs, where the light reflects, the fine slight orange peel texture of the glaze surface. Another reassuring sign is that the enamels show genuine light wear from use.

7.1/8 inches (18.1 cm) diameter. The dish has a chip on the rim that has an associated hairline, now professionally sealed and virtually invisible. The hairline is less than 1.5 cm long.