The wine pot with globular body, a « S »-shaped spout, a high square handle, a domed lid with a bulbous knob. The base is glazed. The body is divided into six panels, four are decorated with large blossoming peonies, the two others are adorned with a rare pattern of Buddhist lion. The pot is also decorated with flowers scrolls, diapers, flame-like design.
The characteristic of this type of vessel is that the decoration is not painted in the usual « kraak » style. The drawing is finely etched and the chiaroscuro is obtain with closely-drawn lines.
In China, these type of pot may have been used for serving warm rice wine. Westerners used to present them as decorative objects rather than as tableware, because they were fascinated by Chinese porcelains.

Bibliography :

Voir RINALDI Maura. Kraak Porcelain, p. 182 et 183 (an essay about this type of ewer)

Voir Chinese Ceramics in the Collection of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, n°57, p.69 (mention of a rare variant with a qilin)