Lot 184
COLLECTION OF ENGRAVINGS AFTER WILLIAM ALEXANDER, R.A.
DATED 1796
Auction: 26 June 2013 at 12:00 BST
Description
nineteen engravings from 'An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to the Emperor of China' published by G. Nicol, London, 1796, various sizes, framed
Footnote
Provenance:
Property from a Scottish Country House
Note:
George Leonard Staunton (1737–1801) arrived in China in 1792 as a member of a British delegation whose objective was to improve trade and establish better diplomatic relations with the Chinese, who, at the time, restricted economic activity with foreigners to the port of Canton (Guangzhou). Although the group managed to secure an audience with the Qianlong Emperor - to whom the British envoy Lord Macartney famously refused to kowtow - their mission failed. Staunton kept detailed notes throughout his time in China, and in 1797 published a two-volume account of the visit which was later translated into French and German.