Microstructures of global trade Porcelain acquisitions through private networks for Augustus the Strong U2 | Microstructures of global trade Microstructures of global trade Porcelain acquisitions through private networks for Augustus the Strong Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Porzellansammlung, Ruth Sonja Simonis IMPRESSUM This publication by the Porzellansammlung results from the research project “Microstructures of Global Trade. The East Asian Porcelain in the Collection of August the Strong in the Context of the Inventories from the 18th Century“, sponsored by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. Editor Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Porzellansammlung, Ruth Sonja Simonis PSF 120 551, 01006 Dresden, Tel.: (0351) 4914 2000 E-mail: [email protected] www.skd.museum Author Ruth Sonja Simonis Copy editors Mark Poysden, Stefan Osadzinski Transcriptions Sabine Wilde Graphic design, typesetting and repro Yasmin Karim www.yasminkarim.de Published at arthistoricum.net, Heidelberg University Library 2020. Cover illustration: Augustus II the Strong by Louis de Silvestre, 1718. Oil on canvas, H. 252.2 cm, W. 171.7 cm. Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Gal.-Nr. 3943, photo: Jürgen Karpinski. Text © 2020, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden and the author. The Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliographie; detailed bibliographic information can be found on the Internet website: http://dnb.dnb.de. This book and its cover are published under the Creative Commons License CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. The electronic open access version of this work is permanently available on https://www.arthistoricum.net URN: urn:nbn:de:bsz:16-ahn-artbook-499-0 DOI: https://doi.org/10.11588/arthistoricum.499 ISBN: 978-3-947449-64-4 (Softcover) ISBN: 978-3-947449-63-7 (PDF) ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ruth Sonja Simonis studied Japanese Studies and East Asian Art History at Freie Universität Berlin. She has been working as a research associate at the Porzellansammlung of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden since 2014. In her research, she focuses on the trading structures and acquisition networks in Europe in the early 18th century. Table of contents Acknowledgements | xii THE ESSAY | 1 1. Introduction | 2 2. The history of presenting porcelain in royal palaces | 10 3. From the Kunstkammer to the Dutch Palace | 12 3.1 Porcelain repositories in Dresden and Poland | 15 3.2 Acquisitions after 1717 | 19 4. The Dutch East India Company | 21 4.1 The structure of the | 22VOC 4.2 Chinese and Japanese porcelain shipped by | 24the VOC 4.3 From ship to market: The VOC and asiatica dealers in the Netherlands | 26 5. His Majesty’s agent | 28 5.1 War correspondence | 29 5.2 Porcelain acquisitions | 31 6. Organisational issues | 35 6.1 Payments through bills of exchange | 36 6.2 Credit from private lenders | 39 Table of contents | vii 7. First acquisition 1716–1717: Egidius van den Bempden | 43 7.1 Porcelain acquisitions via Van den Bempden | 44 8. Second acquisition 1717–1718: Madame and Monsieur St. Martin | 46 8.1 Porcelain acquisitions via the St. Martins | 50 9. Transport of goods from the Netherlands to Dresden | 52 10. Recording the acquisitions in the Palace Inventory | 56 11. Possible identification of porcelain from Holland | 60 11.1 The “Dutch“ specification| 63 12. Augustus the Strong’s personal purchase plans | 66 13. Conclusion | 69 Notes | 75 TRANSCRIPTIONS | 95 Foreword | 96 I. LETTERS | 102 I.01 Assignment of Lagnasco to Holland, 19 May | 1021716 I.02 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 6 June | 1041716 I.03 Lagnasco to Mr. Bernard, 10 June | 1051716 I.04 Chitty and Sons to Lagnasco, 2 July | 1061716 I.05 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 4 July | 1061716 I.06 Chitty and Sons to Lagnasco, 8 July | 1101716 I.07 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 10 July | 1111716 I.08 Augustus the Strong to Lagnasco, 24 July | 1131716 I.09 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 28 July | 1151716 I.10 Augustus the Strong to Lagnasco, 31 July | 1181716 I.11 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 11 August | 1191716 I.12 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 15 August | 1211716 I.13 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 29 August | 1251716 I.14 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 26 September | 1291716 I.15 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 3 October | 1331716 I.16 Van den Bempden to Lagnasco, 2 October | 1351716 viii | Table of contents I.17 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 13 October | 1361716 I.18 David Laurent to Henry Bauldry, 13 October | 1371716 I.19 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 24 October | 1381716 I.20 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 10 November | 1411716 I.21 Augustus the Strong to Lagnasco, 13 November | 1451716 I.22 Van den Bempden to Lagnasco, 23 November | 1471716 I.23 Van den Bempden to Lagnasco, undated | 148 I.24 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 24 November | 1491716 I.25 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 8 December| 1501716 I.26 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 8 December | 1511716 I.27 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 12 December | 1541716 I.28 Augustus the Strong to Lagnasco, 23 December | 1551716 I.29 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 29 December | 1561716 I.30 Augustus the Strong to Lagnasco, 30 December | 1591716 I.31 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 9 January | 1601717 I.32 Jean Scherenberg to Lagnasco, 9 January | 1641717 I.33 Augustus the Strong to Lagnasco, 13 January | 1651717 I.34 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 23 January | 1661717 I.35 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 23 January | 1681717 I.36 Augustus the Strong to Lagnasco, 23 January | 1691717 I.37 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 3 February | 1701717 I.38 Jean Scherenberg to Lagnasco, 5 February | 1711717 I.39 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 5 February | 1721717 I.40 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 16 February | 1731717 I.41 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 16 February | 1751717 I.42 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 20 February | 1801717 I.43 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 20. February | 1821717 I.44 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 23 February | 1831717 I.45 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 23 February | 1871717 I.46 Jean Scherenberg to Lagnasco, 26 February | 1891717 I.47 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 26 February | 1891717 I.48 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 27 February | 1911717 I.49 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 27 February | 1931717 I.50 Van den Bempden to Steinhäuser, 27 February | 1931717 I.51 Augustus the Strong to Lagnasco, 3 March | 1951717 I.52 Van den Bempden to Lagnasco, 3 March | 1971717 I.53 Van den Bempden to Lagnasco, 4 March | 1981717 I.54 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 5 March | 1991717 I.55 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 5 March | 2001717 I.56 Augustus the Strong to Lagnasco, 7 March | 2021717 Table of contents | ix I.57 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 8 March | 2031717 I.58 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 11 March | 2041717 I.59 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 13 March | 2041717 I.60 Van den Bempden to Perozat, 26 March | 2051717 I.61 Receipt of arrival in Dresden, 3 April | 2061717 I.62 Insurance paper for coachmen in Leipzig, 4 May | 207 1717 I.63 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 15 May | 2081717 I.64 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 24 May | 2101717 I.65 St. Martin to Perozat, 29 May | 2101717 I.66 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 9 June | 2121717 I.67 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 17 July | 2131717 I.68 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 31 July | 2141717 I.69 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 17 August | 2151717 I.70 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 21 August | 2161717 I.71 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 24 August | 2181717 I.72 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 7 September | 2191717 I.73 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 9 October | 2211717 I.74 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 27 October | 2221717 I.75 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 9 November | 2231717 I.76 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 19 November | 2241717 I.77 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 29 January | 2251718 I.78 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 1 February | 2271718 I.79 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 1 March | 2281718 I.80 Lagnasco to Augustus the Strong, 29 March | 2301718 I.81 St. Martin to Lagnasco, 8 April | 2311718 II. Dated Specifications | 233 II.01 General specification of acquisitions, 20 October 1716 | 233 II.02 Specification of acquisitions from different dealers, 20 October 1716 | 246 II.03 Specification of acquisitions from different dealers, 20 October 1716 | 248 II.04 Specification of acquisitions from Abraham Thiens, 22 December 1716 | 250 II.05 Specification of birds, 24 October 1716 | 251 II.06 Specification Sub. Lit. A, 8 November 1716 | 254 II.07 Specification Sub. Lit. B, 8 November 1716 | 258 II.08 Specification of prices for birds, 16 February 1717 | 263 II.09 Specification of wares, 27 February 1717 | 264 II.10 Invoice of 70 crates sent to Dresden, 12 March 1717 | 265 x | Table of contents II.11 Invoice of one crate sent to Dresden, 10 April 1717 | 268 II.12 Specification of acquisitions from Jean St. Martin, several dates 1717 | 269 II.13 List of expenses of Jean St. Martin, August-November 1717 | 272 II.14 Specification of wares, several dates 1717| 274 II.15 Specification of acquisitions, 13 November 1717 | 276 III. Undated Specifications | 277 III.01 Quote for vases from Rouen | 277 III.02 Specification of acquisitions in Amsterdam and The Hague | 278 III.03 Specification of outstanding payments | 279 III.04 Specification of additional costs | 280 III.05 List of payments to various dealers | 281 III.06 Copy of invoice, Grommee & Comp. | 283 III.07 Specification of painted fabrics | 286 III.08 Specification of additional costs | 286 Register of persons | 288 Abbreviations | 291 Bibliography | 292 Undated Specifications | xi Acknowledgements This publication is the result of the three-year research project ‘Microstructures of Global Trade: East Asian Porcelain in the Collection of Augustus the Strong in the Context of the Museum Inventories of the 18th Century’, conducted at the Porzellansammlung, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden (SKD).