Rare Wanli plate depicting sacred items of the Eight-immortals, interspersed with peaches, a symbol of longevity The Wanli Shipwreck was discovered off the coast of Terengganu, Peninsular Malaysia in November 2003. It was fully excavated in mid-2005.  Believed to be a Portuguese vessel circa 1625, the ship was carrying an impressive cargo of blue & white kraakware, a form of export porcelain produced during and following the reign of Emperor Wanli (1563-1619). The porcelain was named after the Carracks, the Portuguese ships that first transported this cargo.
Kraak was the first blue & white porcelain to arrive in Europe in large quantities where it became highly sought after. The Ming porcelain of this period charmed buyers with its lively and spontaneous free painted images of deer, crickets and birds in natural settings. Auspicious symbol pillbox

Auspicious Chinese motifs and symbols were also used.

Rare Shou Lou bowls, featuring the God of Longevity

A beautiful scholar and landscape bowl

Wanli porcelain in the Arts – an historical record

Chinese kraakware was far superior in terms of form and style to anything available at the time. It inspired the development of blue & white Delftware in Holland which emerged more than a century later. Prized Wanli bowls and plates featured prominently in the still lifes of the Dutch Masters of the 1600s who wanted to demonstrate their skill at depicting the delicate surfaces and intricate detailing of the exotic blue & white porcelain from the far east.

Still Life with Fruit in a Wan-Li Bowl and a Roemer
c.1630 GILLIS GILLISZ DE BERGH

Detail from Tulips in a Wan-Li Vase
c. 1619, AMBROSIO BOSSCHAERT

Detail from Still Life with Silver Jug
c.1655-1657, WILLEM KALF

Still Life with Cheeses
c. 1615-20, FLORIS VAN DIJCK