QING DYNASTY, QIANLONG PERIOD, LATE 18TH CENTURY

A REMARKABLE SURVIVAL
At nearly six feet high, these enormous and superbly executed Chinese Export reverse-painted mirrors are a remarkable survival. In the 18th century, the journey to China was long and treacherous. It took twenty months of sailing during which crew faced violent storms, strong and dangerous currents, as well as flat calms and reefs. In addition to the natural challenges, they had to survive raids from pirates - which were expected when travelling through the Sunda and Malacca Straits. All of this was notwithstanding unfortunate strokes of bad luck, such as boardings for inspections, typically provoked by foreign rivals (T. Audric, Chinese Reverse Glass Painting 1720-1820 - An Artistic Meeting Between China and the West, Peter Lang, 2020, p. 15).

The port of Canton was the sole point of contact for all Westerners with China. Their large ships could not proceed to Canton itself, they had to moor at Whampoa, a little island in the Pearl River beyond Canton. From there, the crew had to row small boats up the river to access Canton, where all trade took place. But first, the ‘supercargoes’, the name for the representatives of the merchant ship's owner, had to negotiate terms of their trade deals with China that were to occur over the following four months. The supercargoes had to prepare for a visit from the Hoppo, the equivalent of a general customs inspector for the province of Canton. These meetings involved elaborate ceremony and profuse exchanging of gifts. If all went well, the supercargoes hoped to obtain favorable trade conditions and a warehouse on Whampoa in which to store their goods until it was time for them to make their return journey. After the meetings and an agreement was reached, the crew and cargo were then permitted to proceed to Canton (ibid.).

Many Cantonese painters took inspiration from their surroundings, and the subject-matter of many reverse-painted mirrors are scenes from along the Pearl River. Firsthand Western accounts of the journey often describe it as fantastically colorful, bustling with commerce and people from foreign lands, with exotic fruit trees bending over the water and towering pagodas in the distance. It must have been a breathtaking sight for those witnessing it for the first time. This pair of mirrors show the Pearl River in the background, and in the foreground one depicts spring and youth, and the other depicts autumn and old age. The banks of the Pearl River were dotted by the luxurious dwellings that undoubtedly belonged to wealthy merchants or city leaders. After navigating up the Pearl River, and likely stopping at various posts along the way to show their necessary travel documents, the Western sailors finally reached the spot where the river widened. The row boats then had to navigate around hundreds of commercial sampans, colorful junks, and beautiful ‘flower boats’ where wealthy Cantonese were often seen dining. Only then could they moor in the quay and set foot in Canton to begin trading (ibid., pp. 15-16).

THE ORIGINAL FRAMES
The thickness of the glass and the style of the original Chinese frames on these mirrors suggests they were made for the European market, and were likely in a French collection. The later added pegged paneled backings of deal and poplar support this theory, as does the stencil inscription to the back of one: 115 dusol. It is possible they were supplied through the agency of the Compagnie des lndes, which maintained an important presence at the port of Canton. A single related example of comparable size was formerly in the collection of Sir James Horlick, Bt., sold Sotheby's, London, 10 November 1995, lot 66. A further comparable pair of mirrors, albeit of a much smaller scale and depicting interior scenes, was sold from the Estate of Doris Merrill Magowan, Christie's, New York, 22 May 2002, lot 25 ($361,500).