Page 190 - The colours of each piece: production and consumption of Chinese enamelled porcelain, c.1728-c.1780

CHAPTER 5. Porcelain Trade at Canton 1740-1760

5.1. Introduction

This chapter aims to provide a detailed analysis of porcelain trade between China and

Europe in the period between 1740 and 1760. Based on records from the VOC and the

EEIC, the first section provides a historical analysis of porcelain trade at Canton, with

a particular focus on blue and white porcelain. It first demonstrates that the trade of

blue and white experienced ups and downs. Scholars have associated fluctuations in

East India Companies’ trade with changing trade policy and trade environment from

European companies. This research, on the contrary, argues that the fluctuation in

porcelain was not only influenced by factors from the company itself, but also by

factors from the China side.

The second section draws attention to the enamelled porcelain trade and

demonstrates a different trade pattern from blue and white. Unlike the fluctuating

trade of under-glazed blue, enamelled porcelain trade experienced steady growth. This

is a fact that has been largely neglected in current studies. This neglect is mainly due

to the less frequent investigation of the enamelled porcelain trade on its own account.

In contrast to its steady price (as shown in Figure 4-3), the imported quantity of blue

and white was fluctuating. On the contrary, the quantity of enamelled porcelain

enjoyed steady growth. Situated in its historical context between 1740 and 1760, this

research suggests the reason why it occurred.

During the 1740s and 1760, the blue and white porcelain trade was controlled by

the Hong merchants while enamelled porcelain trade was controlled by informal

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