The Huangbaozhen kilns in the Yaozhou region of northern China (modern Tongchuan) began producing green-glazed porcelain in imitation of Yue wares, created in the south, as early as the late Tang period. By the eleventh century, the Yaozhou craftsmen were combining the carved designs found in Ding wares with their delicately pooled green glazes, to create an effect that soon became famous and much sought after in its own right.

Like is seen in Ding ware, early Yaozhou artisans carved designs by hand into their pieces, while later examples were made in a more mass-produced fashion by the introduction of molds. Yaozhou wares come in many shapes and sized, including dishes, bowls and vases; this example may have been intended for use as a cosmetics container. Since Yaozhou wares were intended for domestic Chinese consumption, they differ greatly from blue-and-white wares in terms of the decorative language used on the vessel bodies. Early pieces, such as this example, tend to feature designs such as that are rather simple; later examples are often much more complex, yet at the same time they lack the quiet sophistication of the earlier Yaozhou wares.