An album of Chinese paintings of punishment scenes

A series of 12 small-format paintings bound in an album depicting various methods of punishment in the Qing Dynasty. Punishment and trials were among the most popular motifs with foreign travellers who visited China in the 19th century.

Due to the increasing influx of Western visitors, Cantonese artists were in search of affordable material that could meet the ever-growing needs of tourist consumption. To this end, they began making paper from the wood of the native evergreen tree tongcao 通草 (Tetrapanax papyrifer) on which they depicted various aspects of Chinese society: the court clothes of the Manchu emperors and their officials, the production of tea and silk, ships in the ports, the legal system and the punishment of convicts, wedding banquets, local attractions, birds and insects, theatrical performances, and many other things that were both strange and attractive to foreign eyes.

Small, colourful paintings were usually produced in workshops where individual artists executed a specific part of the painting. They painted in the gouache technique and sketched the figures with the help of models, which they then painted. When the painting was finished, it was placed on regular paper to fix the material and the edges were wrapped with silk ribbons or painted paper. The paintings were then bound together in an album, usually in groups of twelve, with each album featuring a single subject. (NVS)