Silk Merchant Showing Samples to the Western Buyer
Painting
1870-1890 (made)
1870-1890 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This painting is from an album depicting the silk industry. Before 1842 the 'hong' merchants in Canton monopolized a large proportion of the Chinese silk trade. 'Hong' merchants had the authority of the Chinese government to trade with Europeans. After 1842 four more port cities were opened to trade with the West so there was greater competition. Chinese silk merchants provided various patterns and designs for their European customers to choose from. They also accepted special orders dictating specific designs or loom-widths.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Titles |
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| Materials and techniques | Watercolour and ink on paper, brocade. |
| Brief description | Album Cover and Painting, 'Silk Merchant Showing Samples to Western Buyer', sixteen of sixteen by Wu Jun, watercolours on paper, Guangzhou, 1870-1890 |
| Physical description | Album Cover of brocade, striped with red, green and blue. Rectangular painting in cool tones depicting a central scene. It is bordered with blue ribbon. Inside a large building framed by two trees, a series of figures engage in a conversation. In the foreground, two figures carrying white sacks. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Object history | This painting is from an album depicting the silk industry. Before 1842 a large proportion of the Chinese silk trade was monopolized by the 'hong' merchants in Canton. After 1842 four more port cities were opened to trade with the West so there was greater competition. Chinese silk merchants provided various patterns and designs for their European customers to choose from. They also accepted special orders dictating specific designs or loom-widths. Album cover and painting from a series numbered D.911 to 926-1901. Each sheet in the album depicting a different stage of the cultivation and manafacture of silk. Purchased from Carl Langweil, accessioned in 1901. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Asia Department registers, as part of a 2022 provenance research project. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This painting is from an album depicting the silk industry. Before 1842 the 'hong' merchants in Canton monopolized a large proportion of the Chinese silk trade. 'Hong' merchants had the authority of the Chinese government to trade with Europeans. After 1842 four more port cities were opened to trade with the West so there was greater competition. Chinese silk merchants provided various patterns and designs for their European customers to choose from. They also accepted special orders dictating specific designs or loom-widths. |
| Associated objects |
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| Bibliographic reference | Souvenir from Canton : Chinese export paintings from the Victoria and Albert Museum, Shanghai, 2003
95 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | D.926-1901 |
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| Record created | September 18, 2002 |
| Record URL |
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