{"id":354,"date":"2017-10-20T17:16:24","date_gmt":"2017-10-20T16:16:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.qub.ac.uk\/sirroberthart\/?page_id=354"},"modified":"2018-06-05T07:14:24","modified_gmt":"2018-06-05T06:14:24","slug":"hart-silver-collection","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.qub.ac.uk\/sirroberthart\/hart-silver-collection\/","title":{"rendered":"Hart Silver Collection"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Sir Robert Hart Silver Collection (Goldsmiths\u2019 & Silversmiths\u2019 Co., London, 1888) is on display at the Naughton Gallery<\/a> in the Lanyon Building of Queen’s University Belfast.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The Hart epergne (Goldsmiths’ & Silversmiths’ Co., 1888), Queen’s University Belfast
All images courtesy of the Naughton Gallery. All rights reserved.<\/small><\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Hart Silver Collection is an ornate set of chinoiserie<\/i> table silver, and was gifted to Sir Robert Hart in 1890 by his staff \u201cas a united expression of esteem by the members of the service Foreign and Chinese\u201d. The gift acknowledged Hart\u2019s influential career in China during a pivotal period in Sino-Western relations.<\/p>\n

Born in Portadown in 1835, Hart enrolled at Queen\u2019s at just 15 years old. In his 45 years as Inspector General of the Chinese Imperial Maritime Customs (1863-1908), Hart helped to shape Chinese trade, foreign relations and infrastructure.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Hart candelabras (Goldsmiths’ and Silversmiths’ Co., 1888), Queen’s University Belfast<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Hart silverware consists of an epergne (centrepiece), a pair of candelabras and four compotiers (dessert stands) in the chinoiserie style, incorporating decorative elements inspired by Chinese design. The service was manufactured in England by the Goldsmiths\u2019 & Silversmiths\u2019 Co.<\/p>\n

The silverware was presented to Lady Hart in London on 20 November 1890 to acknowledge Hart\u2019s contribution to the Customs Service and his decision to decline the British Ministership in Beijing. Hart wrote of the gift, \u201cI value the \u2018motive\u2019, but I fear the plate itself will hold out attractions of another kind of value to – burglars!\u201d<\/p>\n

The Hart silverware was willed to the University by Hart\u2019s great-grandson, along with Hart\u2019s personal archive.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Sir Robert Hart Silver Collection (Goldsmiths\u2019 & Silversmiths\u2019 Co., London, 1888) is on display at the Naughton Gallery in the Lanyon Building of Queen’s University Belfast. The Hart Silver Collection is an ornate set of chinoiserie table silver, and was gifted to Sir Robert Hart in 1890 by his staff \u201cas a united expression of esteem by the members of the service Foreign and Chinese\u201d. The gift acknowledged Hart\u2019s influential career in China during a pivotal period in Sino-Western relations. Born in Portadown in 1835, Hart enrolled at Queen\u2019s at just 15 years old. In his 45 years as…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-354","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","post-archive"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/P6Nal4-5I","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.qub.ac.uk\/sirroberthart\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/354","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.qub.ac.uk\/sirroberthart\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.qub.ac.uk\/sirroberthart\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.qub.ac.uk\/sirroberthart\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/46"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.qub.ac.uk\/sirroberthart\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=354"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.qub.ac.uk\/sirroberthart\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/354\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":405,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.qub.ac.uk\/sirroberthart\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/354\/revisions\/405"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.qub.ac.uk\/sirroberthart\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}