A remarkable set of wall paper

A remarkable set of four early 19th century Chinese panels of wallpaper, profusely decorated with birds and flowers in an exotic landscape, the polychrome colours on a rare gentian or lapis lazuli blue ground.

These wallpaper panels are painted on an exceptionally rare lapis lazuli ground made from lapis sourced along the silk route probably in Afganistan. The colour was reserved for the highest level of Chinese Aristocrat or Imperial palace. It is unusual that they could be commissioned for a European provenance. The intensity of the decoration with a huge number of birds and flowers in a garden setting is rare symbolic language, using the combination of major birds the pheasants a symbol of virtue, beauty, and auspiciousness, the cranes revered as symbols of longevity, happiness, and good fortune, the pheonix birds being harmony and rebirth, expressley associated with the court of the Empress. The closest colour to these panels used in 18th century interiors is the State bed made for George 1 part of the collection of Calke Abbey, supplied from China in the early 18th century, although the wallpaper is late Regency in period when blue became fashionable again.

The panels have been mounted on museum quality boards, in bespoke gesso and silver lacquer frames with museum standard glass, the paper carefully cleaned and repaired. The paper used is a mixture of rice and mulberry pith to give a strong weave in the paper, the construction can be seen in detail with a magnifying glass. 

Chinese circa 1825

width overall 230 cms Height 184cms