Chinese Porcelain Teacup. Export approval seal mark from the Shanghai Cultural Relics Bureau #4. The single character preceding the numeral is the alternative or short name for "Shanghai."

Size: 3 3/4 X 3 3/4 X 2 1/2 in. 

#7091 . 

Chinese Jian Ding (Certified) Export Approval Seals have been issued since the establishment of the People’s Republic of China in 1949. To this day they are still being put on any “old-looking” porcelain which are deemed permissible to export out of China. The laws regulating this state that anything made before 1949 is considered a “cultural relic,” and cannot be taken out of the country without a government seal. The law also states that nothing in China can be legally purchased from a government-authorized antique shop that dates from Emperor Qianlong’s reign or before (i.e. before 1795). In practical use, when applying these export seals to pieces, it means that no items 200 years old or older are to be stamped, although the seal is also not considered an absolute guarantee that any piece is antique. Originally there were two different departments in charge of the exportation of antiques from China, but the State Export Department which was active between 1949 to 1986 was dissolved due to accusations of rampant corruption, and only the Cultural Relics Bureau is still active today. Before the late 1980s there were also four main export bureaus, one each located in Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and Guangzhou (Canton). After 1980 as foreign tourism became more permissible several provinces received their own export bureaus, including Hunan, Jijiang, Quangxi, and Hebei.