Henri Bertin and the encounters between China and France in the 18th century

Conference at 18:00 p.m. by John Finlay, CNRS Associate Researcher.

My doctoral dissertation research on a Qing imperial album depicting the Yuanming yuan (Yale University, 2011) addressed the topic of artistic and cultural encounters between China and France in the eighteenth century. My more recent research has focused on the role of Henri Bertin (1720–1792), a Minister of State under Louis XV (r. 1715–1774). Bertin was in direct contact with the Jesuit fathers of the French Mission in Beijing, who sent him objects, engravings, paintings, translations of Chinese texts, and long letters. Most of these documents have been published in the volumes of Memoirs concerning the Chinese, which provided unparalleled access to knowledge of China.