A SET OF SIX CHINESE-EXPORT POLYCHROME-DECORATED WALLPAPER PANELS

Among the most refined goods exported from China were large rolls of decoratively painted paper, mostly prepared specifically for the western market. They were cut to fit a room and pasted to the wall or lined on canvas and set on a wooden stretcher (as the panels offered here). This type of wallpaper falls into two broad categories: foliage and floral patterns centred upon sinuous young trees issuing from naturalistic rockwork bases with birds and insects, or figures involved in everyday activities, most commonly the rice cultivation or palatial courtly scenes. By the 19th century, the fashion for chinoiserie was such that most European palaces and mansions would have at least one room that was decorated with Chinese wallpapers.