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This is one of the few remaining pieces of a collection of Chinese blue and white porcelain formed by my great grandmother, Kathleen Allen (London Granny, as she was known), in the later 19th century. Her father in law, George Allen, was Ruskin's publisher, and a friend of the Rossetti family, Kate Greenaway and other artists. The family were archetypal aesthetes, and Kathleen's collection was formed at the height of the fashion for Chinese blue and white amongst the 'modern set'. It was maybe the last real expression of the craze amongst Europeans for blue and white, which had been going on since the late middle ages. The Chinese kilns are still busy producing it, and it's as gorgeous as ever. As we engage in ever closer economic relations with China, perhaps it's time for a new phase of China Mania.