Image
Category
Collection
On Display
Object type
Maker
Place of origin
Date

Barber's shaving bowl in the shape of a shell

1850-1900

Chinese planisphere with pamplet, 1819

1819

Folding tortoiseshell spectacles with case, Chinese, 1801-1900

1801-1900

Two packs of playing cards

1801-1830

Decorated hair ornament with spatulate ends

1870-1900

The upper section is comprised of a gourd-shaped blue enamel vase decorated with gold 'longevity' (shou) characters written in six kinds of script. The lower part of the gourd is decroated with two characters reading 'great fortune' (daji). When activated, music plays, the waterfalls revolve, and the ducks swim. The fisherman waves his fishing rod, the woodcutter repeatedly throws a bundle of firewood over his shoulder and the farmer goes in and out of a cave. In the pavilion the scholar waves his fan and he doors on the vase open to reveal a figure revolving inside. This clock is powered by a series of springs, fuses, and chains that work in tandem to control all movement. The complexity of the clock's design clearly indicates that workshops in Guangzhou during the Qianlong period were sophisticated enough to rival those in the Forbidden City. (So 182710).

Zimingzhong with rich decoration

1700-1799

Copper gold-plated enamel lotus flower cylinder clock. The movement was made in Guangzhou. The manufacturer’s name is engraved at the back panel of the movement, both in Chinese and in English ‘Cheong Simg Canton’. The musical device was produced in Europe in the 1800s, providing melody to complement the performance. (So 183083).

Zimingzhong with British and Chinese mechanisms

1800-1899

Copper-gilded enamel building inverted ball roller curtain clock. (So 182713).

Musical Mechanisms in Zimingzhong

1700-1799

Boxed bottle of tit ta san, falling and bruising medical powder, by the Kwong Chin Koon dispensary, Canton, China, 1920-1926

Boxed bottle of tit ta san

1920-1926

Glass bottle containing beige powder, probably prepared by Tung Kwan Kok and exhibited at the 1904 World's Fair, St. Louis, USA, Chinese, 1900-1904

Glass bottle containing beige powder

1900-1904

Copper-gilded clock with painting of a scene of boats moored at the coast and a parade transporting treasures as bystanders look on. Dial has English letters that are flipped/rotated and do not spell anything, though could be imitating Williamson, a well known clockmaker in London during this period. (183247).

European-style Zimingzhong

1700-1799

Boxed metal bottle of Tung Kwan San, Army Medical powder, with advertisement, by Kwong Chi Koon dispensary, Canton, China, 1880-1930

Boxed metal bottle of Tung Kwan San

1880-1930

Copper gold-plated enamel gourd type clock. Their gourd shape, the two-spotted deer, and the lignzhi fungus all symbolise longevity. The figure t the centre of the base holds a banner wishing for happiness and prosperity. (So 183128).

Blue Enamel Zimingzhong

1700-1799

Cylindrical glass bottle containing "As You Wish" oil, prepared at The Kwong Chi Koon Dispensary, Canton, China, 1880-1930

Cylindrical glass bottle containing "As You Wish" oil

1880-1930

Timken tapered roller bearing, short series, medium type no.339, 35mm diameter

Timken tapered roller bearing

1910

Dental instrument cabinet, mahogany, by the Harvard Co., Canton, Ohio, USA, 1895-1905

Dental instrument cabinet

1895-1905