The Nation's Premier Antiques Center

Chinese Export Armorial Plate

Chinese Export plate decorated with the arms of Adriaan Valckenier (1695-1751).

Chinese Export plate decorated with the arms of Adriaan Valckenier (1695-1751), from Suchow & Seigel Antiques Gallery

Chinese export porcelains are as widely sought by discerning collectors today as they were at their introduction. Brought to Europe as early as the fourteenth century, Chinese porcelains were considered rare objects of immense value and were often mounted in gilt silver. The establishment of commercial trade routes to Asia in the early sixteenth century paved the way for a greater quantity of porcelains, including those specifically designed for European export such as the armorial plate above. Unfamiliar with the symbols and customs of their early trading partners, Chinese potters began to base their designs on models. In fact, a very early example of Chinese porcelain currently displayed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art is an ewer showing Portugal’s coat of arms upside down.

Chinese Export underglaze blue and white armorial plate with arms of Cary impaling Rowe quartering Serjeants Inn, circa 1726.

Chinese Export underglaze blue and white armorial plate with arms of Cary impaling Rowe quartering Serjeants Inn, circa 1726, from Suchow & Seigel Antiques Gallery

Until the end of the seventeenth century, porcelain decorated in blue pigment under the glaze dominated the export trade. It was, in fact, the growing interest in coat of arms that lead to the the popularity of polychrome enameled decoration painted over the glaze. The armorial plate featuring the arms of Cary above shows the use of both techniques. The first armorial plate was painted in cobalt blue only, which made it very difficult to depict coat of arms legibly. Polychrome enamels enabled elaborate coat of arms and became the defining export of the Chinese porcelain trade in the eighteenth century. Both plates above are featured in the illustrious volume, Chinese Armorial Porcelain. Suchow & Seigal Antiques Gallery can be reached here regarding these and their other export porcelain.

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