Large porcelain dish with curved sides and flared rim. It stands on a low, incurved foot ring. Decorated with cobalt blue pigment under a shiny, clear glaze with bluish tinge; foot rim unglazed. The interior is painted with a peacock and a peahen in a landscape surrounded by plum blossom, chrysanthemum, peony, bamboo and a stream. The exterior is painted with sprays of orchids alternating with sprays of chrysanthemum. The base has a mark: 'xi chan shan', probably the name of a hill.
Large dishes of this size were rare. It was possibly made for the export market in the 19th century, when Chinese porcelain dishes of a grand size were sometimes used as display pieces in houses of the well-to-do in Europe and the West.
