Chinese Export Solid Silver 6 Drinking Tots, Dragons, Wang Hing c1890

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Chinese Export Solid Silver 6 Drinking Tots, Dragons, Wang Hing c1890:
$1238.33

An exceptionally rare set of 6 drinking tots embossed with 4 claw dragons (flying in clouds), made by Wang Hing c1890. Dragons have whiskers and tots have a gold wash inside. Sets of 6 are now much more difficult to locate, and in particular with 4 claw flying dragons, fully hallmarked and signed by the maker on each of the 6 tots.

This unique set has been independently valued with an insurance value of £1600.

This would make a beautiful gift or an exceptional set to display with pride.

So hurry, to secure your beautiful and unique piece of Chinese history.

Weight: 164g

Height: 4.0cm each

Diameter at Top: 3.5cm each

Diameter at base: 2.4cm each

Hallmarks:

WH for Wang Hing
90 for 90% silver (Standard Chinese silver % for quality items)
Chinese signature of maker

About Wang Hing

Wang Hing was a prolific firm active in Hong Kong and Canton during the last quarter of the 19th and the first quarter of the 20th century. Like many of the Chinese Export Silver makers, the name Wang Hing is a purely fictitious one; a not uncommon phenomenon in China where business was often conducted under a name that was intended to invoke good luck and success. Whoever was at the helm of this company, they were not only a master silversmith of extraordinary talent, but also demonstrated entrepreneurial skills that few of his contemporaries seemed to possess. The 1919 Hong Kong Dollar directory records Wang Hing’s address as 10 Queens Road Central, Hong Kong and the existence of a branch store at 1 Sai Hing Street, Canton. There are a variety of Chinese characters used on pieces attributed to Wang Hing, indicating that the firm employed many artisans and workshops to meet the demand for Chinese Export, in particular as they were a supplier to Tiffany & Co in New York; who discovered Wang Hing silver while travelling in China. This discovery resulted in a 20 year period where Wang Hing created silver for Tiffany, which in itself attests to the level of quality of this silversmiths.