A set of three Chinese Imari 'Dame au Parasol' plates and a dish

The Dutch draughtsman, Cornelis Pronk (1691-1754), was commissioned by directors of the Dutch East India Company in 1734 to produce designs to be transferred on to Chinese porcelain, which they hoped would be more successful than Chinese designs. However, due to the expense of transferring his designs onto porcelain, the volume of Pronk's work is relatively small. Two watercolours by Pronk- 'La Dame au Parasol' and 'The Doctors' Visit'- are in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. The design known as 'La Dame au Parasol' was the first to be commissioned in 1734.