A very fine reverse glass painting


Qianlong Delicately painted with an elegant couple reading a book in a luxuriant garden by a lake, gilt-wood frame.37cm (14 1/2in) x 52cm (20 1/2in) wide.
|清乾隆 鏡面高士遊湖畫During the 18th century Canton (Guangzhou) was the centre of reverse glass paintings of this type, although the plates themselves were of European manufacture, often French, supplied through the agency of the Compagnie des Indes. The taste for these pieces grew rapidly in Europe; indeed, in the 1760s Francis Dashwood, 2nd Baronet had views of his seat West Wycombe Park sent to China to be copied in reverse glass, favouring the techniques of Chinese craftsmen to that of the European artisans.Compare with a related reverse glass painting, 18th century, which was sold at Sotheby's London, 26 October 2016, lot 1063.