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Chinese Export Furniture

CHINESE EXPORT STYLE

Expanded trade between Europe and East Asia, starting in the 16th century, led to a booming market for exported goods, particularly furniture. This was bolstered by the establishment of the Dutch and English East India Companies at the beginning of the 17th century. From folding screens and chairs to lacquer tables and silver, Chinese Export furniture was in demand and regularly copied and imitated, leading to styles like chinoiserie and Chinese Chippendale.

The expansion of exporting that had strengthened the arts during the Ming dynasty continued into the Qing dynasty era — Chinese designers made many furniture pieces specifically for export, resulting in distinctive designs that mixed traditional techniques with forms appealing to foreign buyers. For instance, cabinetmakers in Canton (modern-day Guangzhou) were prolific in crafting hardwood furniture for export in European styles that involved the expert joinery techniques of Chinese furniture. Designs for Chinese Export porcelain, cabinets, decorative objects and other furniture were often more ornately adorned than they would be for a local audience, such as with mother-of-pearl overlays or surfaces featuring lavish pictorial scenes or gold on black motifs. Some were even commissioned by wealthy European families to be adorned with their coat of arms.

Because lacquer furniture was especially prized, and the resin used to create it was difficult to import as it would harden during the long voyage, artisans in China and Japan exported numerous lacquer pieces. Long before lacquer made its way to Japan, the Chinese treated the material differently. They used it to create smooth, glossy surfaces, but also for carving, an art that began in the 12th century and is exclusively Chinese. These pieces are called cinnabar lacquer after the powdered mercury sulfide (cinnabar) employed to produce their characteristic red hue. A popular form for export was a compact cabinet with drawers, usually displayed on a small table. Undecorated furniture built in Europe was also shipped to China to be lacquered. The international exchange of design would influence furniture into the 19th century and later, informing styles such as Art Deco and Art Nouveau.

Find a collection of antique Chinese Export tables, beds, cupboards, table lamps and more furniture on 1stDibs.

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Style: Chinese Export
Recognized Seller Listings
Chinese Export Porcelain Hexagonal Garden Seats, A Pair
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Porcelain Hexagonal Garden Seats, A Pair, Circa 1850-60 The Chinese Export porcelain Rose Medallion Garden Seats are of a hexagonal barrel form with gilded studs repr...
Category

Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Export Porcelain Maiden Lotus Candlesticks, A Pair
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Porcelain Maiden Lotus Candlesticks, A Pair, Circa 1765 The pair of Chinese maiden candlesticks are each in the form of a Chinese m...
Category

1770s Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Export Porcelain Rose Canton Cache Pot & Stand
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Porcelain Rose Canton Cache Pot & Stand, 1820-1840 The large hexagonal-shaped Chinese Export porcelain cache pot has six panels with different scenes from Chinese ...
Category

Early 19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Large Chinese Cloisonné Enamel Floral Vases Wood Stands
Located in London, GB
Large Chinese Cloisonné Enamel Floral Vases Wood Stands Chinese, 20th Century Vases: Height 78cm, diameter 36cm Bases: Height 15cm, diameter 38cm Overall: Height 93cm, diameter 38c...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Metal, Enamel

Chinese Export Porcelain Taoist Immortal Figures, Eight Immortals and the Leader
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Porcelain Taoist Immortal Figures, Eight Immortals and Shou Laou, Late 18th-early 19th century The Chinese Export porcelain figures each represent a different Taoist...
Category

Late 18th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

18th Century Chinese Export Porcelain Bowl with Chinese Domestic Furniture
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Famille Rose porcelain bowl with Chinese "Antiques" & Scholar's items on Furniture, Qianlong Period, circa 1735-1740. The Chinese Export porcelain bowl is finely painted inside and out with famille rose enamels. On the front is a depiction of an unusual grouping of Chinese domestic...
Category

1730s Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Export Porcelain Canton Famille Rose Medallion Garden Seat, ca. 1880
Located in Banner Elk, NC
A Chinese export porcelain canton famille rose garden seat, of circular form, the polychrome enameled surface with alternating scrolled medall...
Category

Late 19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Large Antique Chinese Export Porcelain Bowl Famille Rose Hand Painted C-1770
Located in Katonah, NY
This exquisite 18th-century Chinese export porcelain bowl was hand-painted during the Qianlong era, circa 1770, using colored enamels in the Famille Rose palette. Pink peonies in ful...
Category

1770s Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

China Trade Watercolor Pictures of Junks & Sampans, Set of Five
Located in Downingtown, PA
China trade watercolor pictures of junks & sampans, Set of Five, Circa 1850 The Chinese watercolor paintings on pith paper each depict a diffe...
Category

Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Paper

Vintage Chinese Porcelain Turquoise Pair of Indian Runner Ducks
Located in Downingtown, PA
Vintage Chinese Porcelain Turquoise Pair of Ducks, 20th Century A pair of figures of an Indian runner duck, also known as a bottle duck, colored turquoise with a purple glazed hollo...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Peach, White and Blue Dragon Motif Porcelain Vase
Located in Queens, NY
Chinese porcelain vase crafted in the style of the Yuan Dynasty depicting a raised and glazed blue and white dragon against a matte, peach colored ground, and decorated with geometri...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Vintage Chinese Tole and Iron Potted Flower Sculpture
Located in Queens, NY
Vintage Chinese tole and iron decorative potted flower sculpture with white flowers connected to a green multi-leaf stalk, mounted in a circular white and blue metal base pot. (Simil...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Iron

Chinese Tang Dynasty-Style Sancai Glazed Terra Cotta Horse Tomb Figure
Located in Queens, NY
Antique Chinese Tang Dynasty-style terra cotta figure of a horse commonly used as a tomb figure for wealthy burials in the 7-8th centuries, and crafted with traditional tri-color gla...
Category

20th Century Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Terracotta

Chinese Sancai Glazed Tang Dynasty-Style Horse Figure
Located in Queens, NY
Antique Chinese Tang Dynasty-style terra cotta figure of a horse commonly used as a tomb figure for wealthy burials in the 7-8th centuries, and crafted with its traditional tri-color...
Category

20th Century Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Terracotta

Chinese Qin Dynasty Style Life-Size Terracotta Soldier Statue
Located in Queens, NY
"Chinese Qin Dynasty-style (20th Century) life-size terracotta soldier statue standing with hands clasped on a rectangular base. (Head is removable)...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Terracotta

Chinese Qin Dynasty Style Life-Size Kneeling Terracotta Soldier Statue
Located in Queens, NY
Chinese Qin Dynasty-style (20th Century) life-size terracotta soldier statue kneeling on a rectangular base. (Head is removable)(Companion piece: NW...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Terracotta

Chinese Sancai Glazed Tang Dynasty-Style Terra Cotta Horse Tomb Figure
Located in Queens, NY
Antique Chinese Tang Dynasty-style terra cotta figure of a horse commonly used as a tomb figure for wealthy burials in the 7-8th centuries, crafted with traditional tri-color glaze, ...
Category

20th Century Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Terracotta

Canton Famille Rose Mandarin Pattern Charger, Qing Dynasty, ca. 1890
Located in Banner Elk, NC
A Canton Famille Rose 12.75-inch charger, the polychrome enameled surface depicting an active palace scene with a distinguished warrior and attendants being presented to the Emporer, the border with an arrangement of butterflies, flowers, and fruit on a gilded ground with four floral reserves with an alternating butterfly and bird (illustrated in J. Feller, p. 42, #2).* Book references Dr. John Quentin Feller, Chinese Export Porcelain in the 19th century: The Canton Famille Rose Porcelains. Salem...
Category

Late 19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Pair of 20th Century Chinese Black and Gold Lacquered Three-Tiered Cabinets
Located in Queens, NY
Pair of Chinese black lacquered three-tiered glass and wooden cabinets decorated with landscape scenes and carved borders with brass hardware and detailed interior ( Early 20th Centu...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Glass, Wood

Chinese Export Porcelain Famille Rose Plates Painted with Flower Baskets
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Porcelain Rose Verte Plates Painted with Flower Baskets, Yongzheng (1723-1735) The pair of Chinese Export Yongzheng period "Rose-Verte" porcelain plates depict an orn...
Category

Early 18th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Ceramic, Porcelain

Chinese Export Porcelain Lotus Leaf-Shaped Dish
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Porcelain Lotus Leaf Shaped Dish, Circa 1765 The large Chinese Export “famille rose” porcelain saucer dish is made in the form of a lotus leaf with the rim and border...
Category

Mid-18th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Vintage Chinese Tole and Iron Potted Flower Sculpture
Located in Queens, NY
Vintage Chinese tole and iron decorative potted flower sculpture with white flowers connected to a green multi-leaf stalk, mounted in a square yellow and blue metal base pot with sca...
Category

19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Iron

Chinese Export Porcelain Famille Rose Botanical Soup Tureen & Cover
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Porcelain European Flower Botanical Soup Tureen & Cover, Circa 1780 The Chinese Export porcelain tureen and cover are well painted with large European bouquets of ...
Category

18th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Blue and White Hexagonal Porcelain Vase
Located in Queens, NY
Antique Chinese (Early 20th Century) blue and white hexagonal-shaped porcelain vase depicting a village scene and surrounding nature and accented with blue scroll handles at the neck...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Export Powder/Talc Shaker
Located in New York, NY
Chinese Export, sterling silver powder/talc holder/shaker, China, Ca. 1900. Decorated with an etched, full dragon that wraps itself around the holder/shaker. Holder is also lightly h...
Category

Early 1900s Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Sterling Silver

Chinese White and Figurative Scene Porcelain Winter Melon Vase
Located in Queens, NY
Antique Chinese (early 20th century) winter melon form white porcelain vase decorated with a gathering of women and children in a pastoral setting and characters on the reverse side....
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese White and Blue Floral and Character Design Porcelain Urn
Located in Queens, NY
Antique Chinese (Early 20th Century) porcelain urn decorated with a blue geometric floral pattern surrounding a centered emblem with dark blue characters, a Greek key band around the...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

1920s Chinese Export Silver Box
Located in Jesmond, Newcastle Upon Tyne
An exceptional, fine and impressive antique Chinese Export silver box; an addition to our collection of boxes and cases. This exceptional an...
Category

1890s Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Silver

Chinese Export Porcelain Large Figures of Mythical Characters
Located in Downingtown, PA
Pair of Chinese Export Porcelain Figures of Shouxing, God of Longevity Qianlong Period, Circa 1775 This charming pair of porcelain figures represents one of the most important and ...
Category

1770s Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Pair of Chinese White and Pink Cherry Blossom Motif Lidded Porcelain Urns
Located in Queens, NY
"Pair of Chinese white porcelain urns decorated with dark pink and green-leafed cherry blossoms growing up the rounded forms, finished with red-finial topped lids and made with holes...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Vintage Chinese Oval Black and Gold Tole Floral Walkway Design Tray
Located in Queens, NY
Vintage Chinese oval tole serving tray with a painted gold design of a figures climbing a staircase to a walkway surrounded by flowering plants on a black background with a shallow l...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Metal

Chinese Export Porcelain Canton Jar decorated with Panels of Chinese Figures
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Porcelain Large Canton Temple Jar, American Market, Daoguang, First Quarter 19th Century A handsome Chinese Export Canton Large Temple Jar, produced for the American ...
Category

Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Export Porcelain Large Famille Rose Punch Bowl
Located in Downingtown, PA
Large Chinese Export Famille Rose Punch Bowl Qianlong Period, Circa 1765-1775 This magnificent punch bowl is a testament to the artistry of the Chinese potters at the height of the...
Category

1770s Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Export Porcelain Turquoise Pair of Cats
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Porcelain Turquoise Pair of Cats, Early 20th Century The porcelain Chinese porcelain cats are a facing pair with a turquoise color ground sitting in as recumbent posi...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Pair of Chinese Decorated Lacquered Cabinets
Located in Queens, NY
PAIR of Asian Chinese (19th Century) decorated lacquered small 2 door cabinets with scenes and figures on rectangular stands with filigree corners and shelf (PRICED AS PAIR).
Category

19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Lacquer

Pair of Chinese Celadon Balluster Vases
Located in Queens, NY
PAIR of Chinese celadon colored vases with baluster shapes, accented at the necks with scrolled ears, each sitting atop a round foot (PRICED AS PAIR).
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Pair of Chinese Export Porcelain Plates Qianlong Era Circa 1750
Located in Katonah, NY
Dimensions: 9.5" diameter Condition: Excellent Price: $1,360 Made circa 1750, this beautiful pair of Chinese export porcelain plates is hand-painted in vibrant famille rose enamels. ...
Category

Mid-18th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Pair of Antique Chinese Rouleau Shaped Potted Tree Design Porcelain Vases
Located in Queens, NY
PAIR of Antique Chinese (late 19th-early 20th Century) porcelain vases with rouleau forms and a design depicting potted trees with characters extending up the necks. (PRICED AS PAIR)
Category

19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Cobalt Blue and Gold Porcelain Vase
Located in Queens, NY
Antique Chinese (Early 20th Century) cobalt blue porcelain vase decorated with a variety of gold patterns including koi, vines, botanicals, and a Greek key band around the neck. Som...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Panel Art Depicting Birds and Branches in Raised Mother of Pearl Pieces
Located in Queens, NY
Chinese panel art featuring a raised bird perched on a flowering tree branch detailed in pieces of mother of pearl against a burgundy and brown floral bordered background in a carved...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Mother-of-Pearl, Wood

Chinese Mid-Century Inlaid Metal 4-Drawer Jewelry Box / Cabinet
Located in Queens, NY
Chinese Mid-Century small rectangular hardwood box / cabinet features 2 hinged swing doors both carved and inlaid with faux white jade above a bottom drawer with incised metal scroll...
Category

Mid-20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Fabric

Chinese Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum-Style Terracotta Warrior
Located in Queens, NY
Antique Chinese terracotta warrior figure modeled after one of the 7,000 warriors that form the Terracotta Army in the Mausoleum of the Fir...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Terracotta

Chinese Export Porcelain Famille Rose Teapot and Cover
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Porcelain Famille Rose Teapot and Cover, Circa 1740-50 The circular globular teapot is unusually painted to either side of the spou...
Category

Mid-18th Century Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

18th-century Chinese Export Pseudo Tobacco Leaf Oval Dish
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Pseudo Tobacco Leaf Oval Dish, Circa 1765 The oval Chinese Export porcelain dish is painted in a variation of the Tobacco Le...
Category

1760s Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Ming Dynasty Porcelain Shou Lau Figure
Located in Queens, NY
Asian Chinese (Ming Dynasty-Circa 1500) blue & green porcelain Shou Lau seated figure with oversize head (symbolism of longevity & luck) on a base suppo...
Category

16th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

China Trade Painting on Paper depicting the Feeding of Silkworms
Located in Downingtown, PA
China Trade Painting on Paper depicting Feeding of Silkworms, Circa 1780-1800 This painting is a superb example of the artwork created by Chinese artists for the Western market, off...
Category

Late 18th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Paper

Chinese Export Famille Rose 'Precious Objects' Porcelain Dish
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Famille Rose 'Precious Objects' Porcelain Dish, Qianlong Period, Circa 1765-1775 This superb oval dish is a quintessential example of Chinese Export porcelain create...
Category

Mid-18th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese White and Blue Character and Floral Lidded Ginger Jar
Located in Queens, NY
Antique Chinese (late 19th century) lidded ceramic ginger jar urn with blue floral designs surrounding bold, centered characters on 4 sides.        
Category

19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Yongzheng Chinese Export Porcelain Armorial Plate with Arms of Gresley
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Armorial Porcelain Plate, Arms of Gresley Quarterly with Bowyer in Pretence, Yongzheng Period, 1735 This u...
Category

1730s Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

18th Century, Chinese Export Coral and Puce Porcelain Tea Service
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese export porcelain service spectacularly decorated with a smart coral scale ground with panels of puce flowers. The service com...
Category

Mid-18th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Pair of Large Chinese Canton Famille Verte Ormolu Mounted Porcelain Vases
Located in London, GB
Pair of large Chinese Canton famille verte ormolu mounted porcelain vases Chinese, 19th century Measures: height 107cm, diameter 37cm This magnificent pair of Chinese vases, fro...
Category

19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Ormolu

Chinese Rose Porcelain Mandarin Saucer Dish, Early 19th Centuy
Located in Downingtown, PA
The sauce dish finely painted with Mandarin figures in the central well and flowers and butterflies on the border.  
Category

Early 19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Export Silver Card Case
Located in London, GB
Chinese Export Silver Card Case, circa 1890, embossed and chased with a dragon among clouds on one side, featuring a single vacant shield-shaped cartouche; the reverse decorated with...
Category

1890s Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Silver

Antique Chinese Han Dynasty Style Bronze Ritual Urn
Located in Queens, NY
Antique Chinese Han Dynasty-style verdigis bronze ritual urn with raised archaistic patterns wrapping its form and accented with small rings on two sides beneath the opening. Charact...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Bronze

Pair of Antique Chinese Beige and Orange Foo Dog Patterned Porcelain Vases
Located in Queens, NY
PAIR of Antique Chinese (late 19th-early 20th Century) porcelain urn-form vases with a pattern featuring swirling orange foo dogs against a gray-beige background. (PRICED AS PAIR) C...
Category

19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Export Porcelain Large Five-piece Famille Rose Garniture of Vases
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Export Porcelain Large Five-piece Famille Rose Garniture of Vases, Circa 1775-80 The Chinese Export porcelain flattened baluster vases and covers are of a large size with ra...
Category

1770s Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Large Antique Chinese Cloisonne Bowl on Custom Period Hardwood Stand
Located in San Francisco, CA
Fine and large Qing dynasty cloisonne bowl on an antique custom hardwood stand.
Category

Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Brass, Enamel

Chinese Porcelain Framed Famille Rose Plaque of Golden Pheasant on a Tree Branch
Located in Downingtown, PA
Chinese Porcelain Framed Famille Rose Plaque of Golden Pheasant on a Flowering Tree Branch, 20th Century, The large porcelain plaque, in an upright format, depicts a large Golden Ph...
Category

Mid-20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese White and Blue Figurative Porcelain Ginger Jar
Located in Queens, NY
Chinese white porcelain jar decorated with blue figures amid scroll detailing with a finial topped lid. Condition: Good; Wear consistent with age and use
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese White and Blue Octagonal Porcelain Pot
Located in Queens, NY
Chinese white and blue porcelain octagonal pot painted with a unique figurative vignette in each panel beneath a floral design leading up to the opening. Condition: Good; Wear consi...
Category

20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Furniture

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Export furniture for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a broad range of unique Chinese Export furniture for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage furniture created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include asian art and furniture, decorative objects, serveware, ceramics, silver and glass and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with ceramic, porcelain and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Chinese Export furniture made in a specific country, there are Asia, East Asia, and China pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original furniture, popular names associated with this style include Europa Antiques, Wang Hing & Co., Luen Wo, and Hung Chong & Co.. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for furniture differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $40 and tops out at $216,780 while the average work can sell for $1,998.

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