A late 17thc Arita broth bowl and cover of European form known in France as 'ecuelle'
decorated in the Chinese Transition style, 
made for export by the Dutch East India Company
Arita kiln, Hizen province, Japan
Early Edo period (late 17th century)
 
Modelled after a silver/gold European form known in France as 'ecuelle' - a bowl which was given to a noblewoman on her birthing bed, containing a hearty broth to revive the new mother after child-birth. The bowl was traditionally given as a gift by the father, and each of the handles show three demi-flowerheads, or hearts, representative of the father, mother and newborn child.
The exterior of the bowl is decorated in in the Transitional style, in underglaze cobalt blue with Chinese male and female figures in front of a fenced terrace amongst rockwork, bamboo and pine trees, the low domed cover similarly decorated with a crisply modelled finial in the form of a fruit spray.
 
A superb example of 17thc trade, this piece beautifully demonstrates cross-cultural style: taking its shape from a European metalwork original, it's decoration from a Chinese Transitional period design, and it's materials and artistry from Japan, on order to the Dutch East India Company to be shipped out of Japan and sold a noble family in Europe.
 
Measurements:
17cm wide