Possibly the Work of Spoilum (Chinese, act. 1785-1810)

Lot 24

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About Auction

Fine Americana: The Keane Collection by Bonhams Skinner

Live

Fine Americana: The Keane Collection

By Bonhams Skinner

Nov 19, 2021

Set Reminder 2021-11-19 10:00:00 2021-11-19 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Fine Americana: The Keane Collection https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/skinner/fine-americana-the-keane-collection-7822 Skinner is honored to be selling the extraordinary Beacon Hill Collection of John and Marilyn Keane. Highlighted by important 18th and early 19th century American furniture, and exceptional paintings from the China Trade, the collection is set to be offered in a live auction on November 19. Bonhams Skinner bidsquare@bonhamsskinner.com

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Lot Description

Possibly the Work of Spoilum (Chinese, act. 1785-1810)

An Imperial Review at a Military Encampment
Unsigned.
Oil on canvas, 32 1/2 x 51 3/4 in., in a giltwood frame.
Condition: Relined, retouch.

Literature: Carl Crossman, The Decorative Arts of the China Trade, 1991, p. 165.

Exhibitions: The Royal Pavilion, Art Gallery and Museums, Brighton, The China Trade 1600-1860, 1986, no. 78.

Note: Described by Crossman as "one of the most ambitious of all genre paintings depicting Chinese life painted for the western market," the scene presents an imperial military review with detail and grace uncommon for export paintings of this period. The Qianlong Emperor sits in customary fashion outside his tent while a senior mandarin presents to him a group of soldiers for inspection. As an archer from the group begins to prostrate himself, a soldier in the royal entourage gazes up at a gold and scarlet standard situated amongst ephemeral leaves fading into a bright, cloud-filled sky reminiscent of contemporaneous western landscapes. This early example of Cantonese oil painting is related to two smaller works on glass, one at the National Museum of Ethnology in Leiden, and the other at the Victoria and Albert Museum, the latter of which is stated to have been painted for Richard Hall of the East India Company, who was in Canton from 1785 until 1802. (See Rijksmuseum voor Volkenkunde, Lieden, "Sensitive Plates," catalog by Paul van Dongen, 1995, no. 13, and Margaret Jourdain and R. Soame Jenyns, Chinese Export Art in the Eighteenth Century, 1950, p. 37 and pl. 66.)

Condition

Condition: Scattered spots and small lines of retouch throughout sky, and to a much lesser extent in the faces and dress of the figures below.

Any condition statement is given as a courtesy to a client, is only an opinion and should not be treated as a statement of fact. Skinner Inc. shall have no responsibility for any error or omission. The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections or the effects of aging.
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