Originally published in Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper, the object gives rise to a series of questions. Who fashioned it? For whom was it intended? What kind of reaction did it elicit? What were its uses? How did it function as a social actor? What does it tell us about the four Chinese theaters in San Francisco between 1868 and 1879, as well as those in the nearby mining towns?
Join Nancy Yunhwa Rao, author of Inside Chinese Theater: Community and Artistry in Nineteenth-Century California and Beyond, as she talks about her book at The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens. This talk looks at the engraving as an object, placing it in multiple contexts, exploring its history, and linking it to sources old and new, such as news reports, digitization efforts, and museum exhibitions.
