For centuries, rare & desirable luxury goods were traded from China to Europe. This far-distant & seemingly fabulous land of gardens, temples & sacred mountains, its culture rich in myth & legend, was known in the West as Cathay. Spanish galleons sailed on trade winds across the Pacific & Atlantic Oceans, their cargoes of treasures such as lustrous Chinese blue & white porcelain destined for the Habsburg Court. Portuguese carracks & Dutch & English ships of the East India Companies followed different trade winds across the Indian Ocean, laden with vast quantities of porcelain as well as magnificent silks, lacquer screens, wallpaper, fans & enigmatic figures of deities. Tea was introduced to Europe by the 17th Century & became the most lucrative commodity in an ever-expanding trade. Coveted by princely collectors, precious artefacts from China adorned palaces across Europe. By the mid-18th Century, the popularity of these luxury arts from China inspired a passion for chinoiserie: the imaginative recreation of a fanciful vision of Cathay in porcelain, silver, furniture & architecture.