Provenance project: Guardian figure

This is one of the provenance research projects underway at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.
For more about the Art Gallery and provenance: artgallery.nsw.gov.au/provenance

Provenance research aims to establish the history of the location and ownership of an object, from the time of its creation or discovery to the present. The Art Gallery is currently undertaking provenance research across the Asian art collection. This is an ongoing process and many objects have long histories without written records.

Guardian figure, which was made in Ming dynasty (1368–1644) China, was given to the Art Gallery by Captain Francis Hixson in 1905. The sculpture is said to have been taken from the ruins of the Palace of Ten Thousand Years near Beijing in late 1900 or early 1901 by members of the New South Wales Naval Contingent who were there to support British troops during the Boxer Uprising. The exact location from which the sculpture was taken is not known, nor is its history between the time it was created and 1900–01.

The sculpture was transported to Australia on the China Navigation Company steamer SS Chingtu, which arrived in Sydney on 15 April 1901. The sculpture was given to Hixson soon afterwards.

In September 2022, Guardian figure went on display in the Correspondence exhibition in the Asian Lantern galleries. It has been exhibited and published many times since entering the Art Gallery’s collection in 1905. For further information about this sculpture, click on the image.

Displaying objects with complex and uncertain histories such as Guardian figure helps to draw attention to them and may attract discussion and additional provenance information. This valuable information assists us to make important decisions about objects in the collection.

Although Australia did not have legislation on the importation of cultural property until the Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage Act 1986, implemented on 1 July 1987, it is important to consider ethical as well as legal aspects of collecting.

We are collaborating with colleagues in Australia and internationally to research objects taken from China between 1900 and 1901 in relation to the period of conflict known as the Boxer Uprising.

Details will be updated as further information becomes available. It is important to note that the Art Gallery has not received any claims in relation to this sculpture.

Since 2015, it has been standard practice for the provenance of all acquisitions to be investigated and documented prior to acquisition by the Art Gallery, in keeping with our Provenance and Due Diligence Research Policy. Retrospective provenance research for works acquired before that time is ongoing.

We welcome any information regarding the provenance of Guardian figure and other works in the collection. To share your knowledge, contact provenance@ag.nsw.gov.au