Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 16

Unknown
[CHINESE EXPORT WATERCOLOURS ON PITH PAPER]. - Botanical Studies.

1890's

About the Item

[CHINESE EXPORT WATERCOLOURS ON PITH PAPER]. Group of 12 flowers and insects. Mid to late nineteenth century. A fine group of Chinese export watercolours showing flowers and insects.. 12 hand painted water-colours on pith paper of flowers and insects, within pale blue silk borders. A few cracks and light stains. Framed and glazed, overall dimensions: 37.5cm by 26.5cm by 2cm. Pith came into use for painting to satisfy the increasing demand for small, inexpensive and easily transported souvenirs, following the massive growth in the China Trade in the first quarter of the nineteenth century. Paintings in oils, on board and canvas were costly and difficult to carry home. Earlier and more prestigious export water-colours had often been on a larger scale and painted on fine Chinese paper or on paper imported from Europe. The albums of pith paintings (and later the little glass-fronted boxes) were inexpensive, light, easy to pack and gave the pictures some protection on the long voyage home. Because many were sold in albums and hence protected from the light, they retain their bright colours to this day. Pith comes from the central column of spongy cellular tissue in the stem of a small tree called Tetrapanax Papyrifera, native to south-west China. It has had a variety of uses, some going back many centuries. At the imperial court both men and women wore coloured flowers made from pith in their hair. For use in painting, it is cut by hand with a knife into thin sheets from short lengths of the spongy tissue. Because of the nature of pith and its cellular structure, the gouache used by the Chinese sat on the surface allowing fine detail and bright colour.
  • Creation Year:
    1890's
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 10.44 in (26.5 cm)Width: 14.77 in (37.5 cm)Depth: 0.79 in (2 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
    All framed and glazed with glass.
  • Gallery Location:
    London, GB
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: 1070881stDibs: LU1419212222232
More From This SellerView All
  • [CHINESE EXPORT WATERCOLOURS ON PITH PAPER]. - Botanical Studies
    Located in London, GB
    [CHINESE EXPORT WATERCOLOURS ON PITH PAPER]. A Group of 10 Flowers and Butterflies. mid to late nineteeenth century. A fine group of Chines...
    Category

    Late 19th Century Naturalistic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

    Materials

    Gouache, Rice Paper, Watercolor

  • A Group of twelve Courtiers
    Located in London, GB
    [CHINESE EXPORT WATERCOLOURS ON PITH PAPER]. Group of 12 Courtiers. Mid to late nineteenth century. 12 hand painted water-colours on pith paper, pale blue silk borders, a few minor...
    Category

    Late 19th Century Other Art Style Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

    Materials

    Gouache, Rice Paper, Watercolor

  • Collection of Watercolour Designs for Silverware.
    Located in London, GB
    [ANON.] Collection of Watercolour Designs for Silverware. South Germany, [Late 19th century]. A series of 9 watercolours, each framed and glazed, ...
    Category

    Late 19th Century Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

    Materials

    Paper, Watercolor, Pencil

  • Iris Kaempferi: No.36 YEDO-JIMAN
    Located in London, GB
    Iris Kaempferi: No. 36 YEDO-JIMAN Tokyo, Yoshinoen-Garden, circa 1910. Hand-coloured woodblock print on handmade rice paper, numbered and captioned at top, outlined in ink. Framed ...
    Category

    1910s Naturalistic Still-life Prints

    Materials

    Wood, Watercolor, Rice Paper

  • Iris Kaempferi: No.10 AKASHI-NO-UE
    Located in London, GB
    Iris Kaempferi: No. 10 AKASHI-NO-UE Tokyo, Yoshinoen-Garden, circa 1910. Hand-coloured woodblock print on handmade rice paper, numbered and captioned at top, outlined in ink. Fram...
    Category

    1910s Naturalistic Still-life Prints

    Materials

    Rice Paper, Wood, Watercolor

  • Iris Kaempferi: No. 91 CHO-HIYEN
    Located in London, GB
    Iris Kaempferi: No. 91 CHO-HIYEN Tokyo, Yoshinoen-Garden, circa 1910. Hand-coloured woodblock print on handmade rice paper, numbered and captioned at top, outlined in ink. Framed in...
    Category

    1910s Naturalistic Still-life Prints

    Materials

    Watercolor, Rice Paper

You May Also Like
  • Nude Painting, Watercolor on Rice paper, Yellow, Red by Indian Artist "In Stock"
    By Kartick Chandra Pyne
    Located in Kolkata, West Bengal
    Kartick Chandra Pyne - Untitled - 18 x 29 inches (unframed size) Watercolor on Rice paper Inclusive of shipment in roll form. Style : After graduating from the Government College of...
    Category

    Early 2000s Modern Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

    Materials

    Rice Paper, Watercolor

  • School of Athens after Raphael Vatican 18th Century Pen Ink Wash Drawing c. 1780
    By (after) Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino)
    Located in Meinisberg, CH
    The School of Athens after Raphael • 18th century Pen and Ink Wash Drawing • Later glazed wood frame, ca. 62 x 78.5 cm • Mounted behind a modern arch...
    Category

    Late 18th Century Naturalistic Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

    Materials

    Handmade Paper, Ink

  • African American Woman artist Mailou Jones Cezannian Cote d'Azur cubist village
    Located in Norwich, GB
    If you are interested in African American Art and in Women in the Arts, I will certainly not need to introduce Lois Mailou Jones (1905-1988). Often associated with the Harlem Renaiss...
    Category

    Mid-19th Century American Modern Landscape Drawings and Watercolors

    Materials

    Watercolor, Gouache, Handmade Paper

  • 'Seated Nude', Paris, Louvre, LACMA, Académie Chaumière, SFAA, California Fauve
    By Victor Di Gesu
    Located in Santa Cruz, CA
    Estate stamp, verso, for Victor Di Gesu (American, 1914-1988) and painted circa 1955. An elegant figural interior showing a young woman seated on a bed beside a table bearing a vase...
    Category

    1950s Post-Impressionist Nude Paintings

    Materials

    Handmade Paper, Watercolor, Gouache

  • Set of Three Gouache & Watercolour Paintings of Tribal Objects on Handmade Paper
    By La Roche Laffitte
    Located in Cotignac, FR
    A set of three framed watercolour and gouache studies on handmade paper applied to Vélin d'Arches of tribal objects by French artist La Roche Laffi...
    Category

    Late 20th Century Realist Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

    Materials

    Watercolor, Gouache, Handmade Paper

  • Surrealist Gouache and Watercolour on Paper, 'Sunday School Ghosts'.
    Located in Cotignac, FR
    Surrealist watercolour and gouache on handmade paper by British artist Derek Carruthers. Signed bottom right and signed, dated and titled 'Sunday School Ghosts' to the reverse. A wo...
    Category

    21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Figurative Paintings

    Materials

    Acrylic, Gouache, Watercolor, Handmade Paper

Recently Viewed

View All