Chinese export silver
A name on the object
Luen Wo is a name associated with Chinese export silver sold in Shanghai. The British Museum describes it as a retail silversmith with premises on Nanjing Road, and identifies a 1905 punch set commissioned through the firm.
A business name can carry the history of a sale without identifying the craftworker who made every object. Look for the whole group of marks and retain each reading as an object-specific attribution.
Object study
Objects as evidence
Follow individual records and keep each attribution attached to its object.
A tray with two kinds of mark
Tennants catalogues a late nineteenth-century tray as retailed by Luen Wo in Shanghai, with a Chinese-character artisan mark for Yi Tai. The underside is described as bearing LW twice and the character mark. Its shaped border carries chrysanthemum flowers and foliage, with further engraving.
The retailer and artisan marks answer different questions about this tray. They do not establish Yi Tai as the maker of all Luen Wo silver. A separate tray described by S & J Stodel is attributed to Shao Ji for Luen Wo, illustrating why the workshop must be assessed piece by piece.
A museum comparison
Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields lists this late nineteenth-century silver tea strainer with relief plum design under Luen Wo. Plum blossoms and branches frame its perforated bowl. The listing labels the museum-provided image public domain.
The two objects invite different close looks: compare a broad engraved field and applied border with a small strainer designed for tea. Ask for views of the underside, joins and wear before treating either shape or motif as a signature.
Tea Strainer with Relief Plum Design, late 19th century; silver. Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields, 2000.167.
Image provided by Indianapolis Museum of Art, via Artsy. Museum record · Public domain image rights
View the museum listingFollow an interest
What to explore.
A historical firm profile built around object records, not a complete register of workshops or marks.
Check the details
Before you buy.
Start with the individual piece and its complete record.
Open the references
Research this name.
- Related Collect Silver guide
Chinese export silver
Explore the wider trade.
- Related Collect Silver guide
Makers, workshops and marks
Read different marks in context.
- Related Collect Silver guide
Table, tea and presentation silver
Compare serving vessels and gifts.
- Related Collect Silver guide
Construction and identification
Examine relief, joins, and condition.
Sources & further reading
- Tray, lot 2180 Tennants · Auction object record
- Chinese export silver tray, circa 1895 S & J Stodel / BADA · Dealer object record
- China’s hidden century, exhibition guide, p. 147 British Museum · Museum exhibition guide
- Tea Strainer with Relief Plum Design Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields / Artsy · Museum collection listing and image rights
Museum and object records support the distinctions in this profile.