Page 5 - Marchant Ninety Jades For 90 Years

FOREWORD
Ninety years is a long time, more than a normal lifespan. In the
context of Marchant, it represents four generations. The first,
Samuel Sydney Marchant, my father, founded the company
in 1925. This was not an easy time, in fact it was extremely
difficult. The ‘Great Depression’ began in 1929 and the
negative effect continued to the beginning of WWII in 1939.
People did not wish to purchase antiques while bombs were
falling. Therefore, the years 1940-1945 were a virtual standstill inscription dated 1792, is offered with great pride and owes
for the antique business. My father told me he worked at the
Ministry of Defence, supporting the war effort, during this
period. Towards the end of the war, a ‘Doodlebug’ bomb fell
on my father’s gallery in Cursitor Street in the city of London.
The building and all of the stock was demolished. Fortunately,
it was on a Sunday and no lives were lost.
Second generation is the writer of this article, Richard Phillip
Marchant, who joined the firm in 1954. Third is Stuart Julian
Marchant, who joined after serving an apprenticeship at
Christie’s in London, for two years and then a further two years
in New York with Alan Hartman. Fourth is Natalie Marchant,
our in-house professional photographer, who is responsible
for all of our publications and oversees our other gallery at
101 Kensington Church Street, specialising in 18th century
Chinese export porcelain. Last, but by no means least, our joint
fourth generation, Samuel Marchant, named after our founder,
who recently graduated from Bristol University. He joined the
firm in September of this year and I take this opportunity of
wishing him every success. As his predecessors, he has grown
up surrounded by Chinese art, especially jade and porcelain.
Living with and continuously seeing and touching pieces gives
one an inner sense of understanding and appreciation. I have
no doubt our new Samuel will continue all the traditions and
responsibilities of upholding the name of Marchant.
Our present exhibition, titled Ninety Jades for 90 Years, is
the sixth we have held on jades. It is an appropriate subject
matter, as throughout Chinese history to the present day jade
has always meant longevity. In Hong Kong, many ladies wear
either a jade pendant or bangle. It is not uncommon to also
see men with a jade toggle suspended from their belt. The
durability of the stone, one of the hardest known to man,
is only part of its charm and attraction. Variety of colour,
striations and translucency merging to opacity are part of
its fascination. Touch is my favourite sense of appreciation.
Fondling and caressing a simple artistic creation gives me great
pleasure. Perhaps, a reclining animal, such as no. 58, the water
buffalo with boy, one can admire the simplicity of the skin of
the animal, while appreciating the artists interpretation of the
subject matter and use of the stone. Formerly in the collection
of the Marquis & Marquise de Ganay, Courances, France, it
has been appreciated through many generations. This thought
leads me to provenance. Every piece in this exhibition has been
selected, not only for quality, colour and creativity, but also
because we know its history, who has owned, touched and
perhaps treasured, the piece. Where known, we have mentioned
the individual or family name, sometimes because of discretion,
and wishes of anonymity, we only write the country or area
where previous owners have lived. Knowing provenance is an
additional safeguard to our clientele and our reputation.
Our front cover, the Hodgson Rhyton, no. 88, with imperial
its presence to Marchant’s long establishment. One of only
four others that we can trace, it has impeccable history and
provenance and poses some fascinating questions. Is the
Rhyton a Song to early Qing piece, with later added inscription
and date, as suggested by Sir Harry Garner in his letter to Mr
Hodgson on 15th November 1962, written from the Oriental
Ceramic Society, where he says, ‘I think the quality of the
carving is too good for a piece as late as 1780-1790.’
Opinions from distinguished experts of the day, Sir Harry
Garner, Desmond Gure, John Ayers, Louis Joseph, and Adrian
Maynard, all believed the Rhyton to be of earlier date than the
inscription. When exhibited in 1975, at the Victoria and Albert
Museum, no. 447 in the catalogue of Chinese Jade Throughout
the Ages, it was dated 1792, corresponding to the inscription.
Stuart and I both believe and feel comfortable that the Rhyton
is 18th century or earlier.
One of our aims in this exhibition has been to display many
different shapes and forms that exist in this medium. There are
bowls, dishes, vases, waterpots, boulders, brushpots, pendants,
bangles, animals and snuff bottles. There is a great variety of
colours that range from white, celadon, spinach, yellow, grey,
russet, and black. The divergence of shape and form, colour, age
and quality, has been the attraction to collectors throughout
history. I trust new and established collectors will give our
jades a new home where they will continue to give pleasure and
satisfaction and, may I hope, longevity!
Preparation of this exhibition would not have been possible
without all of the staff at Marchant. Particular thanks are due to
Stuart, who with Weishi Sun’s help has described and researched
every piece. Simon Abraham-Gregory supervises and runs the
smooth workings of our gallery, and has done so for the last 27
years. Rachel Rotrand has spent endless hours at the computer,
typing and rewriting the catalogue. Bridget Davidson and Chloe
Dall’Olio have also assisted with the photography and image
editing. Lastly, thanks are due to Hampton Printing, who I
believe have produced a useful addition for the collector’s library.
Richard P. Marchant
September 2015
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