CHINESE SCHOOLCirca 1795-1800The Reach at WhampoaOil on canvas, relined, c. 45 x 58.5 cmThe painting shows the Western ships at anchor at Whampoa Reach, flying the Danish, British, Swedish, American, French, Dutch, Prussian and Portuguese flags. From the foreground Dane's Island, the site of a Protestant cemetery for those Western travelers who perished in the semi-tropical environs of the Pearl River and Canton. On Whampoa Island, bankshalls or warehouses were developed for the trading nations.PROVENANCE: From a Swedish private collection, purchased in Boston, 1976.