Blue-and-white Plate with Sea Wave and Dragon Designs in Iron-red Glaze

As a popular decorative motif, dragons often occur in the backdrop of sea waves since according to the old Chinese tale that the four Dragon Kings lived in the Crystal Palace under the sea. The combination of underglazed blue patterns with red paint on the glaze was first developed during the Xuande period (1403-1424) of the Ming dynasty. The red color, varied in hues, give volume to the motifs.