Preliminary identification
Photo reference
3 uploaded photos
Overview
This is a first edition, first printing copy of Anchee Min's acclaimed historical novel 'Empress Orchid', published in 2004. The title page features a bold, stylized presentation signature from the author inscribed 'To Shirley'. The book is complete with its striking, metallic gold dust jacket featuring a portrait of a young woman in traditional Qing dynasty court attire.
Story
Published in 2004, this novel brings to life the controversial Empress Dowager Cixi, who rose from a humble concubine to rule China for 47 years. Author Anchee Min, who survived the hardships of China's Cultural Revolution, wrote this to humanize a woman long vilified by Western and Chinese historians alike.
Maker / Origin
Anchee Min is a Chinese-American author whose own life story is as dramatic as her fiction. Born in Shanghai in 1957, she was sent to a labor collective during the Cultural Revolution where she was discovered by talent scouts for Madame Mao's propaganda films.
Condition & Value
The dust jacket appears to be in very good condition with minor shelf wear and slight wrinkling at the edges. The pages are clean and bright, and the signature is crisp and unfaded. Excellent overall preservation.
Full Research
Sold comps, value drivers, and venue guidance pulled from recent auction results.
Build on this identification
Layer in sold comps, value drivers, and venue guidance.
Comparable demand stays strongest where maker, originality, and venue confidence line up. Broader examples still trade, but the range tightens quickly when provenance, condition, or selling lane fit is missing.
Best Venue
Specialty auction or a focused dealer with buyers already in this lane.
Signed example with light edge wear and original frame.
Comparable format with stronger provenance and cleaner surface.
Smaller related piece with visible craquelure and trimmed margins.
Period match with softer condition and weaker subject matter.
Close market lane comp with similar material and presentation.