Meet the Expert: The Gold Cups of Eternal Stability and the Celebration of the Chinese New Year

The Gold Cups of Eternal Stability are among the most extraordinary objects in the Wallace Collection. The Qianlong Emperor ordered them especially for the First Stroke Ceremony, performed on the New Year’s Day in the Forbidden City in Beijing. Their surface is covered with kingfisher feathers, a technique also used in decorating a spectacular headdress in the collection of the National Museum of Scotland. In their conversation, curators Dr Qin Cao and Ada de Wit will explore the fascinating history of the gold cups, the use of kingfisher feathers in decoration, and the celebration of New Year at the Chinese Qing court.

For more from our Meet the Expert series of talks, join us next month where Suzanne Higgott, Curator of Glass, Limoges Painted Enamels, Earthenware and Early Furniture will be joined by former keeper in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Dr Julia Poole, in discussing the 'Joseph Plates'; a series of painted enamel plates dated to around 1580-1600:    • Meet the Expert: The Joseph Plates