In the context of this artwork, explain the History of the Description.
The painting depicts Mary Dickinson Riddle, Cassatt's mother's first cousin, seated at a table set with a tea service. The tea set was a gift to Cassatt's family from Riddle's daughter. The tea service is gilded blue-and-white porcelain from Canton (modern day Guangzhou) in Qing dynasty China; in the 19th century, Canton was renowned for its exports to the Western world, as the port city was one of the centers of the Old China Trade. Lady itself was painted by Cassatt as a gift for the Riddle family. However, Riddle's daughter disliked the painting, thinking it portrayed her mother's nose as being too big, and thus the painting was donated to the Metropolitan Museum of Art by Cassatt in 1923.
tea service Canton Western world Qing dynasty Guangzhou Metropolitan Museum of Art China Old China Trade