Sèvres porcelain given as diplomatic gifts to the Chinese Emperor by Louis XV and Louis XVI

Marie-Laure de Rochebrune

The Chinese Emperor, Qianlong (1711-1799), was given many pieces of Sèvres porcelain by Louis XV and Louis XVI. Most of it was sent to China at the instigation of Henri Léonard Bertin (1720-1792), a sinophile minister who was in charge of the Sèvres Manufactory. The speaker will discuss the different gifts sent to China that were mentioned in the Sales registers, and define the diplomatic, commercial, religious and scientific aims of the last two Kings of France a few years before the French Revolution.

Haughton International Ceramics Seminar 2018 at Christie's