Miniature Garden Seat (late 1700s–early 1800s): Art, History and Details

Miniature Garden Seat (late 1700s–early 1800s) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

In the Qing dynasty (1644–1911), luxury items became more affordable to larger parts of the society, including women, merchants, and literati in non-official positions. Imperial patronage and a growing urban population encouraged consumption of luxury goods and local craftmanship. This ivory carved and painted to resemble a miniature garden seat illustrates the superb skills and the creative mind of the talented artisans who sought clients on a competitive market.

Object facts

• Title: Miniature Garden Seat
• Date: late 1700s–early 1800s
• Culture: China, Qing dynasty (1644-1911), Qianlong mark and reign (1736-95)
• Type: Ivory
• Technique: ivory with pigments
• Dimensions: Overall: 4.4 x 3.8 cm (1 3/4 x 1 1/2 in.)
• Collection: China - Qing Dynasty
• Department: Chinese Art
• Accession number: 1989.330

A detail from the museum

A servant carrying a qin, zither, accompanies two gentlemen admiring the trees.

Collection credit

Bequest of Mrs. Severance A. Millikin

Further reading listed by the museum

• Catalogue of the Severance and Greta Millikin Collection. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1990.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.