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Chinese export porcelain

Punch Bowl

c. 1789
Hard-paste porcelain, glaze, enamels in colors, gilding
36.3 × 25.8 cm (14.3 × 10.2 in)

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In the collection of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · as of July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

Chinese officials limited all international trading to the city of Canton, and segregated foreigners within a 15-acre area. Decorated in grisaille, or monochrome, the exterior of this punch bowl shows the 13 trade buildings, known as hongs (foreign factories), that lined this restricted area. Each building was associated with a particular country, and they doubled as counting houses and living quarters, where agents resided during the fall trading season. In this view of the hongs, the American factory lies between those of the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, suggesting that this was an early rendering, made before the United States permanently established its factory next to Sweden’s.

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