Description:
Chinese export brise (French for broken) or folding fan painted on paper and silk in watercolors and gouache in red, green, blue, purple, pink, yellow, black and white with its original lacquerware box, HD 71.007.2. The front leaf has 3 oval landscape reserves with the main, mid-19th century Chinese trading centers - Canton, Macao and Hong Kong. Left are the Canton hongs with 4 national flags (American, British, Dutch, and French) flying in front of their factories, American garden, Western or Protestant Church (built in 1847, destroyed by fire in 1856), and small boats in the harbor in the foreground. Center has the circular harbor of Macao from the southeast, located at the mouth of the Pearl River, with the Praya Grande, a silt-laden bay frequented by shallow draft vessels. The embankment fronting the bay, renowned for its elegant Western-style architecture, was a favored address among the wealthy, and noted for its similarities to Naples and the lack of anything Chinese in its appearance. During Macao's economic decline in the 1850s, most merchant offices and residences relocated to Hong Kong. Right has the city of Victoria on Hong Kong; Victoria Peak, built up with many houses, dominates the imposing skyline, and Western ships fill the harbor. Hong Kong Island became British territory after the First Opium War in 1842. The reverse has a long floral spray with flowers, birds, and butterflies, and the same multi-colored floral border around the edge of both sides. Fans from China were extremely popular, and thousands were made and exported in the 18th and 19th centuries. This fan was possibly made for a Spanish, Mexican, or South American individual with an oval across the middle of 6 sticks on the reverse side with the inscription: "Conception Vallana de Blanco," also found on its box. As with many exported fans, the 18 ivory sticks have carved relief domestic scenes, and are secured with a silver loop, from which hang 2 white silk tassels.
Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+71.007.1 |
