Porcelain Pagoda at Nankin, Nanjing, China, Antique Engraving, circa 1825

About this sheet

This antique engraving of the Porcelain Pagoda at Nankin, the famous Porcelain Tower of Nanjing in China, is an original early nineteenth century print published in London by Thomas Kelly of 17 Paternoster Row, circa 1815 to 1830. The plate is lettered "The Porcelain Pagoda at Nankin" and carries Kelly's imprint without a date.

The view shows the tall, many storeyed pagoda rising within its walled court, each tier marked by projecting eaves. Built in the early fifteenth century under the Ming emperor Yongle and faced with glazed white porcelain bricks, the tower was counted by European writers among the wonders of the world. It was destroyed during the Taiping Rebellion in the 1850s, so early views such as this Porcelain Pagoda engraving record a lost monument.

Thomas Kelly was one of the most successful London publishers of part works in the early nineteenth century, issuing geographies, histories and collections of voyages in weekly numbers for a wide readership. His plates were engraved in line by skilled but usually unnamed craftsmen, and no engraver is named here. The address at 17 Paternoster Row matches other Kelly plates in this group dated between 1829 and 1832, so a date of about 1825 to 1830 is probable, though the book it comes from has not been identified.

The print is an uncoloured line engraving with fine detail in the architecture of the tower. It is a desirable early image of Nanjing for collectors of Chinese views and chinoiserie, and it would look well in a study, library or dining room, framed with a wide pale mount.

The sheet is in good condition for its age, with toning, a few small spots in the margins and light edge soiling; the image itself is clean and strong.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed. Any framed or interior images are shown for presentation and inspiration only, unless the listing explicitly states that the item is sold framed.