Dish with Parasol Ladies

Cornelis Pronk

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Two graceful ladies attired in Japanese kimono have stopped to look at three birds that have crossed their path. An inner border encircles the scene with floral designs, while the outer border contains panels with images of birds and ladies, echoing the central motif. The design on this plate is a modified version of a drawing by a Dutch artist named Cornelis Pronk, originally depicting Chinese ladies in the same setting. Pronk was commissioned by the Dutch East India Company to create a design for tea and dinner sets for Chinese potters to use as a model. At some point, this design made its way to Japan, where Pronk's original design was altered to reflect Japanese fashions instead of Chinese. However, the Japanese versions of this type were sold privately, not by the Dutch East India Company.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art