Dish c. 1680s - 1690s

This anonymous dish presents a vivid tableau of blue motifs on a white background. The floral patterns that adorn the plate are not merely decorative; they echo the ancient language of flowers, where each bloom carries symbolic weight. Notice how the blossoms and twisting tendrils evoke a sense of growth, a visual metaphor for life's cyclical rhythms. These recall similar motifs found in ancient Minoan frescoes or Renaissance tapestries, where flora often signifies fertility and abundance. But there's a unique twist here. The stylized crest at the top of the dish, reminiscent of heraldic symbols, speaks of lineage and power, superimposed over the natural, wild motifs. This tension between the cultivated and the untamed echoes a primal struggle within the human psyche—the desire for control versus the embrace of the organic, unfettered world. It is a recurring cycle, ever present.