02:53
Faizan
We regard Chinese Export Silver, or "China Trade Silver," antiques as a once-lost art.
Why? Many 18th and 19th Century pieces were later inherited by generations of Americans or Britons, who presumed their silver to be of English or early-American manufacture. The rediscovery that China's silversmiths had been turning out exquisite works for Westerners during the China Trade period was an evolving process.
Early works of Chinese Export Silver was intended to reproduce functional objects in the European style. When Western examples were shown to Chinese silversmiths for them to copy, that is exactly what they did, down to the hallmark, changing, sometimes, only the letter that indicated the year it was made. This was done by substituting the Chinese maker's own initial. Some Chinese silversmiths stamped their own initials in English on pieces made for export. This has led dealers and buyers to believe they have discovered a piece that had been made by a heretofore unidentified American smith. As a result, there are probably more pieces of Chinese Export silver on dining room sideboards, displayed in corner cupboards or tucked away in silver drawers than their owners may realize.
Just as Chinese potters produced porcelain for Western consumers in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Chinese silversmiths also created elaborately-decorated objects for international clients. However, in copying the European models, the Chinese artisans managed to add to those objects such Chinese motifs as the dragon and phoenix and scenes of life at the Chinese court. The result is that there was a charming fusion between the East and West. Blending Western forms with Asian decoration including dragons, bamboo, and Chinese landscapes, these fascinating pieces reflect the long-standing cultural and commercial exchange between East and West, and are as enchanting today as in the past.
Examining the Time-Line for Chinese Trade
Portuguese arrived in China (1514)
Portuguese is the first European to reach Chinese by sea, and was also the first European to discover Hong Kong. In 1514, Afonso de Albuquerque, the Viceroy of the Estado da India dispatched Italian, Rafael Perestrello to sail to China in order to pioneer European trade relations with the nation. Portuguese subsequent gain territorial rights at Macao in 1557.
British arrived in China (1637)
In 1637, Captain Weddell (Great Britain) successfully landed at Canton after forcing a passage through the Bogue (from Portuguese word bocca, a mouth), and opened trade negotiations with the Chinese on behalf of the East India Company.
Why? Many 18th and 19th Century pieces were later inherited by generations of Americans or Britons, who presumed their silver to be of English or early-American manufacture. The rediscovery that China's silversmiths had been turning out exquisite works for Westerners during the China Trade period was an evolving process.
Early works of Chinese Export Silver was intended to reproduce functional objects in the European style. When Western examples were shown to Chinese silversmiths for them to copy, that is exactly what they did, down to the hallmark, changing, sometimes, only the letter that indicated the year it was made. This was done by substituting the Chinese maker's own initial. Some Chinese silversmiths stamped their own initials in English on pieces made for export. This has led dealers and buyers to believe they have discovered a piece that had been made by a heretofore unidentified American smith. As a result, there are probably more pieces of Chinese Export silver on dining room sideboards, displayed in corner cupboards or tucked away in silver drawers than their owners may realize.
Just as Chinese potters produced porcelain for Western consumers in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Chinese silversmiths also created elaborately-decorated objects for international clients. However, in copying the European models, the Chinese artisans managed to add to those objects such Chinese motifs as the dragon and phoenix and scenes of life at the Chinese court. The result is that there was a charming fusion between the East and West. Blending Western forms with Asian decoration including dragons, bamboo, and Chinese landscapes, these fascinating pieces reflect the long-standing cultural and commercial exchange between East and West, and are as enchanting today as in the past.
Examining the Time-Line for Chinese Trade
Portuguese arrived in China (1514)
Portuguese is the first European to reach Chinese by sea, and was also the first European to discover Hong Kong. In 1514, Afonso de Albuquerque, the Viceroy of the Estado da India dispatched Italian, Rafael Perestrello to sail to China in order to pioneer European trade relations with the nation. Portuguese subsequent gain territorial rights at Macao in 1557.
British arrived in China (1637)
In 1637, Captain Weddell (Great Britain) successfully landed at Canton after forcing a passage through the Bogue (from Portuguese word bocca, a mouth), and opened trade negotiations with the Chinese on behalf of the East India Company.
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