Object Literature
Chinese Export Silver was manufactured for a 155 year period beginning in 1785. Much of the Chinese Export Silver of the late 18th and early 19th century was made in Canton and carries so-called pseudo-hallmarks which are copy London silver hallmarks. The silver made during this period was mainly in the neo-classical “Georgian” style and was exported in great quantities from Canton to Britain and America, thus the term “China Trade” silver. From the second quarter of the 19th century onward, Chinese forms and decoration became popular and in the late 19th century, Chinese silversmiths added Chinese motifs such as the dragon and phoenix and scenes of life at the Chinese court.