Kangxi Period circa 1710 A very large and finely painted Chinese porcelain charger with a central scene of ladies on horseback overseen by a lady with a border of flowers including lotus and peony ,painted in the verte imari palette The scene appears to show Mu Guiying and seven others of the Yang widows preparing for battle, overseen by family matriarch She Taijun; The story comes from tales of the Yang dan in the early Northern Song Dynasty , general Yang Ye was a great warrior who defended the Middle Kingdom against attack from the Khitan forces of the Liao Dynasty. in a collection of stories known as Ynag Jia Jiang(General of the Yang clan) Yang Ye famously defended the Yanmen Pass in the Great Wall ,becoming a favorite of the Emperor, this led to jealousy from the other generals who abandoned him on the battlefield and he was captured,staving to death. Yang Ye had eight sons,all great warriors and they successfully kept the Khitan forces at bay, however this took its toll and eventually the last of the Yang generals was killed as the enemy forces closed in So it was left tot the widows of the sons of Yang Ye, spurred on by his wife She Taijun, and led by her grand-daughter, Mu Guiying,widow of Yang Zonghao, to defend the Dynasty, they defeated the Khitan forces and then took charge of the emperor's army defeating a new threat from the Tangut forces of the Western Xia,saving the dynasty. Diameter: 21 1/4 in. (54 cm) Provenance: collection of Edmund Rothschild(1916-2009) Michael Cohen &Cohen ,London estate from a private Maryland collector and thence by descent to the present owner Similar one (smaller size of 17in. charger) can be found in catalog book "Kangxi Famille Verte" by Marchant, London Condition: charger is in good condition with no hairline or chips.