Mulan Magnolia, Corn Marigold and Insects
Draughtsman: Canton workshop
This is a Chinese export watercolour depicting mulan magnolia (Magnolia liliiflora), corn marigold (Chrysanthemum segetum) with a butterfly, a dragon fly and a bee. The illustration features a magnolia branch on the left with two purple-pink blooms and one bud, showing the characteristic large, pointed petals of Magnolia species. The magnolia branch has oval green leaves and brown stems with visible aerial roots. On the right are yellow corn marigold with several fully opened flowers showing their characteristic multi-petaled form and green centres. The chrysanthemum plants display deeply lobed green leaves typical of the species. Three insects are depicted in flight: a large dragonfly on the left with transparent wings and a green-marked body; a black swallowtail butterfly with red spots along its wing borders; and a small bee at the centre. The painting demonstrates the fine brushwork characteristic of Chinese export art from the late 18th or early 19th century, combing traditional Chinese flower-and-bird painting style and Western botanical illustration. Previously described as “branch with flowers, ripe and unripe berries, with airborne butterflies and insects”.
Height: 338 mm
Width: 470 mm
Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1973) by Fairhaven, Henry Rogers Broughton
Chinese
Chinese export art
Chinese export watercolour
Support composed of paper
Watercolour : Bodycolour on paper
Accession number: PD.276-1973
Primary reference Number: 23118
Stable URI
Owner or interested party:
The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department:
Paintings, Drawings and Prints
This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:
The Fitzwilliam Museum (2025) "Mulan Magnolia, Corn Marigold and Insects" Web page available at: https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/23118 Accessed: 2025-12-07 17:04:06
To cite this record on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:
{{cite web|url=https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/23118
|title=Mulan Magnolia, Corn Marigold and Insects
|author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2025-12-07 17:04:06|publisher=The
University of Cambridge}}
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