China

The V&A has one of the most comprehensive and important collections of Chinese art outside East Asia, with pieces dating from 3000 BC to the present day.

The V&A acquired its first group of Chinese objects in 1852 and today the collection amounts to approximately 18,000 objects, with examples from all branches of Chinese art including ceramics, jade, metalwork, lacquer, textiles, furniture, sculpture, ivory, bamboo, rhinoceros horn, glass, paintings, manuscripts and prints. The collection is particularly strong in the applied arts of later dynastic China, after AD 1500. 

Search “China” in Explore the Collections

Features

Watch

Chinese gongbi silk painting

Watch the recreation of a figure from a Chinese painting in the gongbi style

  1. Read

    Chinese wallpapers and the chinoiserie style

    The introduction of Chinese wallpapers in the 17th century sparked a fashion that lasted a century
  2. Read

    Dealing and dealers: the East Asia collection
  3. Interact

    The lunar zodiac

    Discover the lunar zodiac animals in art and design from our East Asian collections
  4. Read

    Blanc de Chine – white porcelain from China

    A centuries-old Chinese porcelain tradition reinvented by contemporary designers
  5. Read

    Chinese blue-and-white ceramics

    Discover some of the most iconic and enduring objects in the history of Chinese ceramics
  6. Watch

    Travelling to the Wonderland by Xu Bing

    Celebrated Chinese artist Xu Bing created a magical installation for the John Madejski Garden, inspired by a classic Chinese fable
  7. Watch

    The hidden power of gemstones: meanings, myths, and magic

    Revealing the hidden meanings and magical attributes of gemstones
  8. Watch

    How to pack a fragile and toxic object: ASMR


    How to you carefully pack something so precious?

Collection highlights

Show all
  1. tomb guardian
    Tomb guardian, 700 – 750, China
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  2. box
    Eight geese box, 18th century, China
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  3. teapot
    Teapot, 1700 – 20, Yixing, China
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  4. Daoist robe
    Daoist robe, 1650 – 1700, China
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  5. chair
    Moon, chair, designed by Shao Fan, 2004, Beijing, China
    V&A South Kensington
    View by appointment
  6. pendant
    Pendant, about 1100 – 1000 BC, China
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  7. vase
    Neo-Guan, vase, by Li Jianshen, 2012, Jingdezhen, China
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  8. vessel
    Vessel, 1200 – 1100 BC, China
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  9. Earthernware model
    Man on ox cart, earthernware model, 5 – 220, China
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  10. throne
    Throne, 1736 – 95, China
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  11. painting
    Painting, 1870 – 90, China
    V&A South Kensington
    View by appointment
  12. flask
    Flask, 1403 – 24, Jingdezhen, China
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
Sainsbury Gallery Stairs
Members Room at V&A South Kensington
Shop at V&A South Kensington
the Lydia and Manfred Gorvy Lecture Theatre located within V&A South Kensington

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V&A Shop

Browse the V&A Shop range
Cup and saucer by Hiroyuki Onuki

Cup and saucer by Hiroyuki Onuki

£60

Chinese Dress in Detail

V&A PUBLICATION

Chinese Dress in Detail

£30

Japanese cranes risograph - 10 x 12" print

Japanese cranes risograph - 10 x 12" print

£12

Orange and blue shibori silk scarf

Orange and blue shibori silk scarf

£100

Japanese Kikusui throwover

Japanese Kikusui throwover

£55

Japanese Art and Design

V&A PUBLICATION

Japanese Art and Design

£30

Kimono Cranes keep cup

Kimono Cranes keep cup

£20

V&A blue Japanese umbrella

V&A EXCLUSIVE

V&A blue Japanese umbrella

£25

Awa Province, Naruto Rapids

CUSTOM PRINT

Awa Province, Naruto Rapids

From £15

Japanese kimono fold-flat glasses case with lens cloth

V&A EXCLUSIVE

Japanese kimono fold-flat glasses case with lens cloth

£15

Japanese Dress in Detail

V&A PUBLICATION

Japanese Dress in Detail

£25

Fukusa notecard set

Fukusa notecard set

£8

Chinese wallpaper with flowering shrubs and bees

CUSTOM PRINT

Chinese wallpaper with flowering shrubs and bees

From £15

The Kabuki Actor Ichikawa Omezo I

CUSTOM PRINT

The Kabuki Actor Ichikawa Omezo I

From £15

Wallpaper with birds on branch, in cage and in flight

CUSTOM PRINT

Wallpaper with birds on branch, in cage and in flight

From £15

Courtesan Oyodo of the Tsuruya House

CUSTOM PRINT

Courtesan Oyodo of the Tsuruya House

From £15

Japanese lion figure pin badge

V&A EXCLUSIVE

Japanese lion figure pin badge

£5

Kimono cranes greeting card

Kimono cranes greeting card

£3.75

Kimono: Kyoto to Catwalk - exhibition book

V&A PUBLICATION

Kimono: Kyoto to Catwalk - exhibition book

£40

Soba Choko cup by Kenichiro Inoue

Soba Choko cup by Kenichiro Inoue

£35

Japanese silk leather bookmark

Japanese silk leather bookmark

£5

Cranes and rabbits greeting card

Cranes and rabbits greeting card

£3.75

V&A pattern kimono new edition

V&A PUBLICATION

V&A pattern kimono new edition

£8.99

Chinese wallpaper with peonies and cherry blossom flowers

CUSTOM PRINT

Chinese wallpaper with peonies and cherry blossom flowers

From £15

Lidded pot by Hiroyuki Onuki

Lidded pot by Hiroyuki Onuki

£45

Header image:
Background image: Daoist robe, 1650 – 1700, China (Qing Dynasty). Museum no. T.91-1928. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London