Chinese blue and white porcelain ewer

Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province
Ming dynasty, about AD 1600–1620

This blue-and-white porcelain ewer is in the form of a woman playing a four-stringed pipa (lute).

It is filled with liquid, probably wine, via an opening between the outer and inner robe of the musician's neck and poured out through the raised left sleeve, which forms a spout.

Music plays a vital role in the pursuit of relaxation in traditional China. Entertainment, excursions, feasts and romantic encounters were rarely undertaken without it.

Scholars cultivated their musical talents as one of the `Four Accomplishments’. The others were chess, calligraphy and painting.