Placing China at the Courts of Europe, 1700–1800

China in European Imagination throughout the 18th century

China, the country at the far end of Asia, occupied the European imagination throughout the 18th century, although only adventurous traders and intrepid missionaries had actually seen it for themselves. Tales about its long history, literary tradition, ethical values, social harmony and advanced economy stirred intellectual fascination, while a growing long-distance trade made porcelain, lacquer screens, paintings on silk and paper, and soapstone sculptures increasingly accessible. Rulers, nobility and clergy sought to associate themselves with the famed culture in the east by collecting artworks and adding Chinese-inspired rooms and buildings to their palaces and gardens. As patrons in England, Spain, France, the German and Italian states and the Habsburg empire shaped varying perceptions and connected diverse ideas with chinoiserie, this book investigates the phenomenon at courts across Europe. It is the result of a collaboration between the Institute of Art History of the University of Vienna and the Kulturstiftung Dessau-Wörlitz.