HONG BOWL

This extraordinary bowl is a reproduction of a Chinese export piece circa 1800 in the Collection of the Winterthur Museum. The decoration on this bowl depicts the thirteen ‘’Hong’’ merchants representing thirteen foreign countries (one being the United States) who handled official trade between China and the West. These factories, or ‘’Hong’’ served Western traders as warehouses, offices and residences. This trading system was established in 1757 by the Manchu Dynasty to eliminate contact between the Chinese people and ‘’foreign devils’’ It is suitable for a large table or sideboard or as a presentation piece.