A polychrome porcelain deep dish, decorated with a butterfly and two caterpillars on a blue iris and an orchid, after a combination of three sketches by Maria Sibylla Merian (1647 - 1717), a Dutch botanist and artist who was particularly interested in the study of insects and plants in the Dutch West Indies. Unmarked. China, around 1730. Literature (similar example): Auction catalogue 'Christie's London, The Dr Anton C.R. Dreesman Collection, European Furniture and Chinese Export Porcelain', 10 April 2002, p. 217, no. 416.Diam. 17.5 cm.