Iron-red cream jug with ink figures and gilt outlines

The body of the jug depicts a European troubadour serenading a lady with a lute, which is rendered in ink. The figures are dressed in early 18th-century attire, and the setting is reminiscent of southern France or Italy, most likely inspired by earlier European prints. Beginning in the 1740s, European paintings with romantic themes were sent to Guangzhou, where ceramic artisans meticulously reproduced them onto porcelain. Porcelain pieces featuring these themes were popular between 1735 and 1755, particularly as tea and coffee sets.