Description
Nanking Cargo Tea Bowl & Saucer Salvaged from the Geldermalsen
Paper Label: Christie's/ Lot 5243/ The Nanking Cargo & Brompton Fine Art COA
The term ‘Nanking cargo’ refers to porcelain recovered from a specific Dutch East India Company merchant ship, the Geldermalsen. Built in 1747, the Geldermalsen arrived in Canton (Guangzhou) on July 21, 1751. The ship was fully loaded with a variety of Chinese goods, and departed for the Netherlands on December 18 of the same year. After only 16 days at sea, the ship sank on January 3, 1752 in the South China Sea.
The shipwreck was found in 1985 by British-born salvage expert Michael Hatcher, who was able to surface over 100,000 pieces of Chinese porcelain along with 125 pure gold ingots. The haul was brought to Amsterdam—only 235 years late—where it was auctioned by Christie’s in 1986. The collection performed extremely well at auction, owing to both the romance of recovered treasure and the excellent condition of the pieces. It seems nothing short of miraculous that porcelain left under the sea for hundreds of years could be in impeccable condition. Before being loaded onboard the Geldermalsen, these wares had been packed in tea, which would have provided a valuable second cargo for the Dutch East India Company, and had the unintended side effect of protecting the porcelain from the ravages of salt and sand. It is also worth mentioning that their survival is also due to the virtuosity of Chinese craftsmanship and techniques.
