A large and beautifully decorative Qing dynasty Chinese porcelain charger or presentation dish. It is profusely patterned in vibrant blue on a white ground and has a central seal-script 'shou' character symbolizing 'long life' to the owner, and is surrounded by ruyi lappets and four tiers of stylized Sanskrit 'om' characters. The underside Is painted with four ribboned Buddhist emblems.This pattern is typically attributed to the Qianlong period due to the Emperor's devotion to Buddhism. Should be from the early 1800s, and likely from the Diana Cargo shipwreck, dated 1817. The Diana was licensed by the English East India Company to sail from Calcutta or Madras to Canton, carrying cotton and of course, opium, which was extremely lucrative. The ship would then return to India from China, laden with silks, tea, preserved fruits and thousands of pieces of beautiful blue and white porcelain. On 4th March 1817, the ship was on course for Madras when it hit some rocks off the straits of Malacca and sank. The wreck was identified and recovered in 1994 by Dorian Ball of Malaysian Historical Salvors. In March 1995 Christie's auctioned the porcelain cargo in Amsterdam. Now 205 years after the wreck, these beautiful ceramics are highly desirable and sought by collectors.

This plate is approximately 11 inches in diameter and weighs roughly 675 grams.

Note : These pieces are available with free shipping within India, we do not ship these internationally. Since most of these items are vintage, they are pre-used, pre-loved and beautifully aged. They may have scratches and scuffs, the plating may have worn off and occasionally some missing parts may have been replaced by the original owners. If you’re a regular collector you know how it is.  Eina personally hand picks each item herself so inspite of their imperfections they’re still beautiful as they are. These pieces have been selected as décor pieces and not items of functional use. Please ask us any questions you have and we’ll be happy to answer them for you. We do not offer returns, refunds or exchanges on these items.