Three shell-shaped dishes, the front with a wide flat rim. The base is ribbed and unglazed. Famille verte, decorated in various shades of green, yellow, iron-red and black enamel on the glaze with a vase filled with prunus and camellia, antiquities and objects for the writing desk, such as a weiqi board with two jars for the stones, a ruyi sceptre and an incense-burner. Around the rim a narrow band with flower and foliate scrolls. Such shell-shaped dishes usually occur in famille verte and often have the same decoration. They are more rare in underglaze blue and Chinese Imari. It is unknown if this shape was part of the standard Chinese assortment or whether it was made to order from a European model for export to the West. They were probably used to serve shellfish in The Netherlands. The decoration consists of objects a Chinese scholar would undoubtedly have had in his study.