Page 188 - A Re-examination of Late Qing Dynasty Porcelain, 1850-1920 THESIS

that the painting was presented to her by the late empress dowager, thus establishing a

firm history of ownership. The strong provenance established by being part of the

Wegener collection, along with the striking visual similarities to the dayazhai wares,

provides further support for the styles that the empress dowager supported during the late

Qing era.

The empress dowager also worked to cultivate diplomatic relationships outside of

China. One of the most intriguing of these endeavors was the establishment of a

relationship between Cixi and Queen Victoria, who rose to power in England and held

the throne from 1837 to 1901. 237 These two rulers had something in common, since they

both were female rulers in an era dominated by men. While Victoria was experiencing a

period of historic rise within Britain, Cixi’s power was fluctuating dramatically and

ultimately declining. Surviving historic records do not clearly indicate how Cixi and

Victoria felt about one another. Opinions of the empress dowager were always recorded

by independent entities, which allows for speculation as to their authenticity and

integrity. One first hand account of the relationship between Cixi and Victoria was

recorded by Princess Der Ling 裕德齡, the First Lady in Waiting to the Empress

Dowager. In her writing she states that during her time in the Forbidden City, from 1903-

1905, the Empress Dowager said:

Although I have heard much about Queen Victoria I do not think her life is half as
interesting and eventful as mine. My life is not finished yet and no one knows
what is going to happen in the future. I may surprise the foreigners some day
with something extraordinary and do something quite contrary to anything I have
yet done. England is one of [the] great powers of the world, but this has not been
brought about by Queen Victoria’s absolute rule. She had the able men of
parliament back her at all times and of course they discussed everything until the

237 John Douglas Sutherland Campbell Argyll, V. R. I.: Queen Victoria, Her Life and Empire
(Harper & bros., 1901), 61.

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