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Dish with IHS monogram, armillary sphere, and Portuguese royal arms

ca. 1520–40
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 201
While the doglike lions illustrate a Chinese theme, the Portuguese coat of arms and the armillary sphere (a type of celestial globe) are often found on works made for Portugal in the early sixteenth century. The letters "I.H.S.," a well-known Latin reference to Jesus Christ, would later be adopted by the Jesuits (Society of Jesus founded in 1534) as a symbol for their order.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Dish with IHS monogram, armillary sphere, and Portuguese royal arms
  • Date: ca. 1520–40
  • Culture: Chinese, for Portuguese market
  • Medium: Hard-paste porcelain with underglaze cobalt blue decoration (Jingdezhen ware)
  • Dimensions: Overall: 3 3/4 × 20 3/4 in. (9.5 × 52.7 cm)
  • Classification: Ceramics-Porcelain-Export
  • Credit Line: Helena Woolworth McCann Collection, Purchase, Winfield Foundation Gift, 1967
  • Object Number: 67.4
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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