China
The Walters Art Museum’s collection of Chinese art includes works that span almost five millennia, from the late Neolithic period all the way up to the turn of the twentieth century. Chinese porcelains from the Ming and Qing dynasties were some of William T. Walters’s first purchases in the mid-nineteenth century and they form the foundation of the museum’s Asian collections. With the addition to important Buddhist sculptures, carved jades, ancient bronzes, paintings, and calligraphies, Henry Walters rounded out the Chinese collection so that it precisely reflects the early twentieth-century American vision of China.
The Walters Art Museum’s collection of Chinese art includes works that span almost five millennia, from the late Neolithic period all the way up to the turn of the twentieth century. Chinese porcelains from the Ming and Qing dynasties were some of William T. Walters’s first purchases in the mid-nineteenth century and they form the foundation of the museum’s Asian collections. With the addition to important Buddhist sculptures, carved jades, ancient bronzes, paintings, and calligraphies, Henry Walters rounded out the Chinese collection so that it precisely reflects the early twentieth-century American vision of China.
![Image for Incense Burner with Design of the Eight Auspicious Symbols](https://art.thewalters.org/images/art/thumbnails/PS1_44.543_Fnt_DD_T08.jpg)
Incense Burner with Design of the Eight Auspicious Symbols
18th century (Qing dynasty)
44.543
![Image for Pair of Jars](https://art.thewalters.org/images/art/thumbnails/PS1_49.1860-1861_Fnt_DD_T09.jpg)
Pair of Jars
Porcelain: 1st quarter 18th century; Mounts: 1780-1790
VO.43 (49.1860, 49.1861)
![Image for Pair of Vases](https://art.thewalters.org/images/art/thumbnails/PS1_49.1776-1777_Fnt_DD_T09.jpg)
Pair of Vases
Porcelain: 1st quarter 18th century; Mounts: 19th century
VO.40 (49.1776, 49.1777)
![Image for Pair of Gourd-Shaped Vases](https://art.thewalters.org/images/art/thumbnails/PS1_49.1778-1779_Fnt_DD_T09.jpg)
Pair of Gourd-Shaped Vases
Porcelain: 1st quarter 18th century; Mounts: 1765-1775
VO.41 (49.1778, 49.1779)
![Image for Pair of Shells Mounted as Containers](https://art.thewalters.org/images/art/thumbnails/PL1_49.2255-2256_Gp_TR_T86IA.jpg)
Pair of Shells Mounted as Containers
Porcelain: 1700-1725; Mounts: 1740-1750
VO.45 (49.2255, 49.2256)
![Image for Pair of Vases with a Blossoming Branch](https://art.thewalters.org/images/art/thumbnails/PS1_49.1695_49.1700_Fnt_DD_T09.jpg)
Pair of Vases with a Blossoming Branch
Porcelain: 1st quarter 18th century; Mounts: 19th century
VO.123 (49.1695, 49.1700)