Porcelain plate in red, blue and white ‘The Eight Immortals’, with Qianlong trademark

A deep porcelain dish with underglaze decoration in blue, red and white. Inside, a medallion framed by a double blue circle depicts a scene of a wise old man, dressed in a long robe and holding a long staff, accompanied by a young stag, set against a background of red waves in turmoil. The outer border shows the same background of large red waves, but above them are the Eight Immortals, richly robed and bearing their distinctive attributes, or An Baxian, some of them. 

The Eight Immortals are deities of Chinese mythology who are believed to have existed in earthly form, and dedicated their lives to the pursuit of immortality which they attained through the Tao. 

On the base is a six-character seal in underglaze blue ‘大清乾隆年制’.

Height: 3.8 cm; Diameter: 17.5 cm