Witherell Auctions
Timed Auction

LUXURY ASSET AUCTION

Sun, Mar 9, 2025 02:00PM EDT - Sun, Mar 23, 2025 07:00PM EDT
Lot 42

Lam Qua (1801-1860) Painting "Macoa" & 1839 Letter

Estimate: $10,000 - $15,000

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $10
$100 $20
$500 $50
$1,000 $100
$5,000 $200
$10,000 $500
$50,000 $1,000
Framed Lam Qua (1801-1860) Painting "Macoa" oil on canvas, laid down on board, painting. Depicting Macoa from the southwest, with merchantmen at anchor in the inner harbor. Titled "Macoa" in lower center. Dimensions: 18"h x 24"w. Together with a letter written from Nathaniel Kinsman while aboard a ship at sea to his wife back in London in 1839. Letter is 2.5 pages long. Also included is a framed print depicting, "The Fanny of Salem Commanded by Capt: Kinsman" measuring 19.5" x 13". Notes: Two Paintings by Lam Qua from the Kinsman Family Collection were sold at Christie's London, Topographical Pictures December 15, 2016 Lot 24. Lam Qua was a Chinese painter from the Canton province in Qing dynasty China, who specialized in Western-style portraits intended largely for Western clients. Lam Qua was the first Chinese portrait painter to be exhibited in the West. He is known for his medical portraiture, and for his portraits of Western and Chinese merchants in Canton and Macau. He had a workshop in 'New China Street' among the Thirteen Factories in Canton. From 1836 to 1855, Lam Qua produced a series of medical portraits of patients under treatment with physician Peter Parker, a medical missionary from the United States. Parker commissioned Lam Qua to paint pre-operative portraits of patients who had large tumors or other major deformities. Processing and shipping within the continental US by parcel carrier is $276 by FedEx or USPS signature required and insured at full replacement value for a fee 1.5% of the purchase price, unless waived in writing. DISCOUNTS GENERALLY GIVEN ON COMBINED LOT SHIPPING. Other qualified white glove and blanket wrapped transporters include Pack + Ship Pros, Delbert McCrea and CCC Transport.

Condition

Canvas laid down on board. Small amount of pinpointing on bottom and top right visible under ultra violet light. Craquelure throughout.

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Nathaniel Kinsman (1798-1847) Merchant of Salem, in the China trade; by direct family descent to the Great Great Granddaughter