Dish with Three Friends of Winter

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Plum blossoms, which are among the first plants to flower in the early spring, are often associated with the evergreen pine and bamboo and are known as the Three Friends of Winter, a motif symbolic of Confucian virtues such as endurance, modesty, and fortitude. The shape of the dish and the style of decoration are characteristics often associated with works made for the court in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.

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