Chinese blue and white plate, Kangxi (1662-1722), with foliate rim, decorated to the central roundel with two characters from the 'Yang Jia Jiang': Mu Guiying the female warrior capturing her future husband Yang Zongbao, both on horseback within a cliffy landscape, with an overhanging tree, swirling clouds and rocks in the foreground, the cavetto and wide rim with six petal-shaped cartouches containing scenes of military combat interspersed with chrysanthemum and peony against a radiating swastika ground, the reverse with six panels containing ruyi-heads, three floral scrolls and a six-character Kangxi mark within concentric circles to the base.
The 'Yang Jia Jiang' (Generals of the Yang Family) is a collection of largely fictional novels based upon the Yangs and their loyalty throughout the battles of the Liao (907-1125) and Western Xia (1038-1227), in which they bravely fought to defend Imperial China. Depicted on this plate is Mu Guying, a legendary female hero known for her bravery and loyalty, capturing the handsome Yang Zongbao to demand a marriage proposal.