Album of ink drawings.

Fine collection of original drawings showing Chinese ceremonies, scenes from the Imperial court, portraits of Chinese nobility, musical instruments, traders and craftspeople, each captioned in English.

In the mid XVIII century the Emperor Qianlong implemented the Canton System (1757–1842) in China closing the ports across the country to focus all trade on the southern port of Guangzhou. The Pearl River delta region then became the centre for China's commerce and export industry, which gave a push to the development of an artisan industry. Numerous craftspersons and artists in Canton were commissioned to produce various artworks for the European market. They 'depicted those phases of Chinese life which fascinated the Westerner but defied descriptions to friends and family at home. Before the advent of the camera, this medium played an extremely vital role in revealing Oriental culture to the West.' (Crossman, The China Trade, 1972).