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Chinese Export Porcelain Blue & White Spoon Tray with the Dutch Folly Fort

About the Item

Chinese Export Porcelain blue & white spoon tray with the Dutch folly fort, circa 1775 The rare Chinese Export blue and white quatrefoil dish depicts the Dutch folly fort in the Canton River. The porcelain dish is painted in underglaze blue with a diaper and flower-head design at the rim. The central medallion depicts a landscape of the Pearl River and the city of Canton far in the distance. The center of the scene presents the Dutch folly fort-one of the old folly forts used as warehouses for Chinese products in the process of being exported to the West. Around the fort can be seen several boats probably transporting cargoes of teas and porcelain coming from inland China. The forts were used by both Chinese and European traders, the Dutch folly fort being one of the most famous. This image is based on C. G. Ekeberg's engraving of 1773. In 1773 Captain Carl Gustav Ekeberg published his recollections of several trips to Canton in the service of the Swedish East India Company. This book was illustrated with several engravings based on his own drawings. Dimensions: 7 1/4 inches wide x 5 inches deep Reference: A tea bowl and saucer with this design is in the permanent collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. See the attached photo of the Dutch Folly Fort by George Chinnery (1832). This forts were defensive structures built in the Ming dynasty to protect Guangzhou (Canton). By the beginning of the Qing dynasty the advances in cannonry made them redundant and had fallen into disrepair. They were later commandeered by foreigners – Dong Paotai (Easter Fort) by the French, and a mile away, Haizhu (Sea Pearl), by the Dutch. Thereafter, they were known as the French and the Dutch folly forts and were used for storage and as bases for the staff as the Europeans were not allowed to live in Guangzhou. The Dutch folly fort was directly opposite the city and only a half-mile from the hongs. The history of the term folly fort is unclear, but it may refer to the assumption that the structure was nonfunctional. While often mentioned by travelers, these sites were not commonly depicted by either Chinese or Western artists. Reference: For two large blue and white meat dishes, see Luisa Vinhais & Jorge Welsh, A Time and A Place: Views and Perspectives on Chinese Export Art, 2016, no. 75.76. For a saucer decorated in underglaze blue, see C.J.A. Jörg, Porcelain and the Dutch China Trade, 1982 The Hague, p. 70, cat. 18. For a Chinese famille rose reticulated dish, see Christie’s NYC, The Leo & Doris Hodroff Collection , Part II, 23 january 2008, lot 405. For a blue and white platter, see William Sargent and Rose Kerr, Treasures of Chinese Export Ceramics – From the Peabody Essex Museum, 2012, pp. 145-146, no. 52. For a famille rose dish, see H. Hyvönenk Kiinalaista Posliinia Suomessa, Chinese Porcelain in Finland, , 1986 Finland, p. 147, cat. 262. For a large blue and white meat dish, see John Ayers and Davis Howard, China for the West, 1978, p.207-8.

Dimensions:

Height: 0.25 in (6.35 mm)Width: 7.25 in (18.42 cm)Depth: 5 in (12.7 cm)

Style:

Chinese Export (Of the Period)

Materials and Techniques:

Porcelain

Place of Origin:

China

Period:

Late 18th Century

Date of Manufacture:

1775