Andreas Everardus van Braam Houckgeest, known commonly as “Van Braam,” was born in the province of Utrecht in the Netherlands, and spent much of his early life in the employ of the Dutch East India Company. As early as 1777, he declared himself “entirely devoted to the Americans and their cause.” In 1783, he settled in Charleston, South Carolina, and he became an American citizen in 1784. Due to family tragedy and financial reversals, he took a position as the head of the Dutch East India Company factory in Canton from 1790-1795. With the intention of again settling in the U.S., Van Braam returned in 1796, bringing with him an extraordinary collection of Chinese art and curiosities. He exhibited his collection at his new home, China’s Retreat, in Bristol, Pennsylvania, until 1798, when he sold the house and departed for London. His collection was sold at Christie’s in London in February 1799 and he died in Amsterdam in 1801.