Anonymous Chinese Artist, early 1850's Hongs of Guangzhou (Canton)PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE ENGLISH COLLECTIONAnonymous Chinese Artist, early 1850'sHongs of Guangzhou (Canton)Oil on canvas, Chinese Chippendale-style ebonized and gilt carved wood frame. 26 x 44in (66 x 111.7cm) Framed: 32 1/2 x 49 3/4in (82.5 x 126.3cm)佚名中國畫師 1850年代早期 《廣州洋行》 布面油彩裝奇彭代爾風格金漆木框 A richly and thoroughly detailed depiction of the active harbor of Guangzhou (Canton) taken from a point on the Pearl River, as seen from the north shore of Honam island, at an angle inspired by Western perspective so that the eye is led on a sweep from the right to the left where Chinese dwellings can be seen in the distance. This angle may have been derived from the paintings of William Daniell (1769-1837) whose 1786 view of the factory site is similarly conceived, or from prints of his work.[1] A wide variety of Chinese and Western vessels fill the waterfront, behind which are the Hongs built in the Western style along the quarter mile strip of land and leased to foreign merchants and companies. Although these building complexes were termed 'factories', little, if anything, was manufactured on the premises. Rather, they functioned as warehouses on the ground floor, and the second and third floors as residences, rented by a nation or trading company to temporarily hold goods and house staff during the busy trading season. Starting at the far left is what George Preble (1816-1885) of the US Navy described in 1853 as "a long boat house, over which are the rooms of the Canton Library, Masonic Lodge and Billiard room, [which] extends over the water..." and to the right of it "the great sheds of the Chinese guard, beyond the entrance towards old China street."[2] Robert Bennet Forbes (1804-1889), the great American China trader, attended a ball there in 1849, which he described in his letters to his wife Rose on December 18. Above and behind the club is Mingqua's new hong which flies his flag, and to the right is the residence and flag of the American, Dr. Peter Parker (1804-1888), who is created with introducing modern medical techniques to Guangzhou. Other flags prominently facing the garden are those of the United States and France to the left of the church, and to the right of the church are those of Great Britain and Denmark (housing Jardine, Matheson & Co. as members of the company held the post of Danish consul).Extending over half the width of the scene is the American garden, in the center of which is the Episcopalian church (opened February 1849, destroyed by fire December 1856). Fronting the garden on the water's edge can be seen the area described by Forbes, "The border on the river is a stone wall & outside that of piles, making a sort of pound, or yard, for the boats of the foreigners." Equally of interest are the plethora of boats, both local and foreign, that crowd the harbor. Among the vessels is a British side-wheel steamboat, undoubtedly the Queen, which Commodore Matthew Perry (1794-1858) chartered for protective use from Charles Bowra (1841-1874) of Hong Kong, an illustration of which was published in Ballou's Pictorial in 1854. [3] A veritable encyclopedia of Chinese river craft, always of fascination to foreign merchants and traders, crowd the waterfront, including junks, commercial boats and tanka boats (houseboats). Of particular note is the junk in the left foreground, a heavily manned working boat with the proprietors having tea on the deck.[4] Despite the high quality and precision of the painting it is not yet possible to identify a particular artist, or studio, though comparison of signed or labeled works might eventually allow an attribution.Related works: A nearly identical painting of the same size and undoubtedly by the same artist or studio, was in a private collection when exhibited and published in Patrick Conner, The China Trade 1600-1860, The Royal Pavilion, Art Gallery and Museum, Brighton, 1986, no. 35, p. 32, illus. p.82. A view from a similar angle and of the same size is in the Peabody Essex Museum, M3791, in M. V. and Dorothy Brewington, Marine Paintings and Drawing in the Peabody Museum, Salem, 1981, no. 345, p. 80.[1] Ho Kam-chuen, Historical Pictures, Hong Kong Museum of Art, 1991, no, 6, p. 79.[2] Patrick Conner, The Hongs of Canton, English Art Books: London, 2009, 204.[3] Conner, op. cit., 206-7. Possibly after a watercolor by Tingqua (fl. 1840-70), see Martyn Gregory, Trade Routes to the East, catalogue 71, 1998, no,. 130, p. 91, for a watercolor with the same composition and including the Queen.[4] For a nearly identical boat with multiple crew and proprietors having tea on the deck, see Martyn Gregory, Trade Routes to the East,, catalogue 72, 1998, no, 108, p. 68, a gouache (7 3/4in x 11in; 19.6cm x 2.9cm)