Using examples from the collection of the Gardiner Museum, this lecture will examine the stories behind a wide range of decorative motifs and scenes found on blue and white porcelains of the 16th to 18th centuries. The lecture will begin with a history of symbolic motifs in Chinese art and will proceed to examine a range of motifs in detail, explaining their meanings and their origins so that a deeper understanding of what these porcelains meant to consumers in China can be developed.’