A blue-and-white Chinese porcelain plate, known as “Kraak porcelain”, Wanli

Round Chinese porcelain plate known as “Kraak porcelain*,” decorated in blue and white with three ducks at the water’s edge in a central medallion, and with flowers and other motifs in compartments on the rim.
Wanli period (1573–1619), early 17th century.
Diameter: 37 cm.
A chip on the rim has been repaired.

*It is generally accepted that Kraak porcelain takes its name from the Portuguese ships (caravels) in which it was transported. The term “caraque”—or “caracca” in Italian or Spanish—is itself believed to be derived from Arabic, where the term referred to merchant ships used in Mediterranean trade during the Renaissance: “qaraquir” simply meant “merchant ships.”