Page 43 - Met Museum Export Porcelain 2003
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elaborate known today is a bowl formerly grew steadily after 1784, and by 1810 the
owned by Stevens (fig. 47). It is a testament United States had assumed a position sec-
to the Chinese decorators' abilities to repli- ond only to Great Britainin trade with China,
cate in minute detail every line of a Western surpassing France, Holland, Denmark,
engraving without introducing personal Sweden, Spain, and Austria.
interpretation. Finely decorated pieces such
as this are indicative of the high quality of Merchants in the American trade with
porcelains entering the American market
during the early years of this country's China influenced the taste for imported
direct trade with China. goods, not only for porcelains and silver
but for more ephemeral products such as
Boosting international commerce and textiles and tea, which have received com-
increasing financial rewards were the primary paratively little attention from scholars. The
motivations for doing business in China, northern and mid-Atlantic states largely
and in the years following 1784, the business dominated this trade, and it is not surpris-
brought great prosperity to American ship- ing that the majority of surviving porcelains
builders, traders, and merchants. This was with solid American provenances are asso-
due in large partto the fact that government- ciated with families directly or indirectly
sponsored organizations, such as the Dutch involved in it-merchants, traders, ship-
and British East India Companies, no longer builders, and carpenters-from the port
held a monopoly in China; the country was cities of Boston, Salem, Providence,
open to private enterprise. The exchange New York,Philadelphia, and Baltimore
(figs. 48, 50, 51).
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