Chinese ceramics: Sir Percival David Collection

The David vases combine blue-painted dragons with elephant-head handles and inscriptions that date the pair to 1351. A close look can move between the painted surface, the shaped handles and the words on the body. The Sir Percival David Collection follows Chinese ceramics from the third to the twentieth century. Objects were made for courts, households and export, with different shapes, glazes and decoration. The range lets you compare the demands of use with the effects a potter or painter could create on a fired surface. The Sir Percival David Foundation gave the collection to the Museum in March 2025, after years of display on loan. The gift belongs to its recent history. The ceramics themselves allow a much longer comparison of materials, skills and changing preferences.