Two Chinese carved 'chicken's blood' soapstone seals, early ...

Two Chinese carved 'chicken's blood' soapstone seals, early 20th century, height(s) 8cm. Provenance - Reginald Hedgeland (1874-1967); thence by family descent. All the objects in the collection were presented to Chinese Maritime Customs Commissioner Reginald Hedgeland, and date from around 1900 to 1927. His papers and photographs are deposited in Archives & Special Collections, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. A few of the items of silver and silk banners to be offered by Gorringe's are illustrated in the Reginald Hedgeland photograph archive held at SOAS, University London. The SOAS library site includes the following biography- Reginald Follett Codrington Hedgeland was born in Exeter, Devon on 18 December 1874. He joined the Chinese Maritime Customs Service in May 1898, having graduated from Pembroke College, Oxford, the previous year. Hedgeland was one of many foreigners from Europe and America who made up the higher levels of the Customs Service, which was controlled by central Chinese government. Originally established by foreign consuls to collect maritime taxes during the Taiping Rebellion in 1854, it expanded to include other functions such as domestic customs, postal services, and waterway and harbour management, and it was involved in politics and diplomacy. Hedgeland's long career in China, which saw him retire with the rank of Commissioner in 1930, took him to many ports. His first posting was to Hoihow [Haikou], a port on the mouth of the Nandu River on the island of Hainan in the south. Later posts included Nanking [Nanjing], Tientsin [Tainjin], Macau, Hong Kong, Nanning, Aigun, Swatow [Shantou] and Canton [Guangzhou]. Many of Hedgeland's postings were to remote ports such as Nanning or Aigun, where the foreign social circles would have been confined and social opportunities limited. His photographs of the club house and golf course in Nanning show the somewhat improvised nature of the entertainment available there. Hedgeland's archive documents an experience of the Customs Service far removed from the foreign experience of Shanghai, Hong Kong or Peking [Beijing].

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