海棠杯是中國美術品中出現和流行的一種十分特殊的品種，源頭追溯到漢代，唐代時湧現，這些令人嚮往的酒杯源自异国他乡的萨珊式银杯，除了進口，唐代時也開始在中國製作，其材質也從銀器、玻璃延伸到長沙窯、越窯的瓷器，是中西文化交流的見證。
越窯海棠盃，多數都是以米黃色的顏色出現，參考：
上海博物館藏 越窯海棠盃
上海博物館藏 長沙窯海棠盃
克里夫蘭博物館藏 越窯海棠盃
Oval Shaped Shallow Cup
China, Tang dynasty (618-907) - Five dynasties (907-960)
Glazed gray stoneware, Yue ware
Diameter: 14.6 cm (5 3/4 in.); Overall: 3.8 cm (1 1/2 in.)
Provenance
?-1962
(Frank Caro [1904-1980], New York, NY, ?-1962, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
1962-
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH, 1962-present
盧芹齋 / Frank Caro
1928 年，盧芹齋聘請 Frank Caro（1904-1980 年）在他的紐約辦公室擔任畫廊助理和攝影師。Caro 最後擔任紐約 C. T. Loo & Company 的管理職務。1946 年，Loo 將巴黎 C. T. Loo & Cie. 的管理權轉讓給小女兒 Janine Emmanuel Loo，因為法國頒布了禁止外國人擁有企業的法律 (Lenain, G., 2013, p. 146)。
在 1940 年代，由於在中國的供應鏈開始變弱，盧氏的生意開始走下坡。儘管盧森堡在 1945 年獲得了中國最高級別的表彰，贏得了勝利勳章（Lenain, G., 2013, p.185），但他在中國的命運卻突然發生了轉變。1948 年 7 月 29 日，上海博物館沒收了 17 箱屬於盧武古董公司、運往巴黎的中國古董（Lenain, G., 2013, p.189）。這次沒收之後不久，盧被指控偷竊中國藝術品，剝奪中國的文化遺產。盧氏為自己辯護，他在《藝術新聞》雜誌上寫道，他從未從遺址移走文物，而是在公開市場上購買古物。他進一步為自己的行為辯護，指出他出售的作品將在世界各地「為後代保存」。Loo 為他出售的中國古物鳴鑼開道，他說：「我堅信所有的藝術作品都應該被保存下來：
我堅信所有的藝術作品都是無國界的。它們就像無聲的大使，到世界各地去，讓其他人了解中國人和中國的偉大文化。(《藝術新聞》，1950年)
巴黎小紅樓（pagoda）
盧隨後被禁止回國。在此聲明之後不久，上海市文物管理委員會沒收了留在盧上海倉庫的三千多件藏品（Zheng, C., 2003, pp.） 這些戲劇性的事件讓盧鍇改變了他的經營模式。
在他的中國存貨被扣押後，盧關閉了 C. T. Loo & Company，並開始以 C. T. Loo, INC 的名義獨家經營。1950 年 3 月，他正式宣布從 C. T. Loo & Company 退休，並將紐約的存貨清盤出售。此時，他以 C. T. Loo, INC. 的名義營運，將個人資產與公司資產分開。不知何故，Loo 改變了主意，決定繼續經營他的畫廊。
1952 年 9 月 1 日，Loo 在紐約和巴黎重新開設了兩家獨立運作的畫廊。法蘭克‧卡羅 (Frank Caro) 是盧氏超過 25 年的助手，他以 C. T. Loo Chinese Art 的名義管理紐約分店，而 Janine Emanuel-Loo 則在 Michel Berudeley (1911-2012) 的協助下，繼續管理巴黎畫廊 C.T. Loo & Cie., Art Ancien de Chine。
1952年之後，盧氏部分退休，但仍繼續與客戶通信、鼓勵購買，並為紐約與巴黎畫廊的經理人提供建議。1953 年，在吉美國家亞洲藝術博物館館長 Jeannine Auboyer (1912-1990) 的協助下，盧嘉勒開始撰寫回憶錄，但尚未完成。在這份未完成的手稿中，盧氏敘述了他在中國古董銷售方面的先驅努力，儘管是以美化的方式。
盧氏於 1957 年逝世後，他的遺產得以延續。Loo 家族繼承了紐約和巴黎的 C. T. Loo & Company，畫廊由 Frank Caro 和 Janine Emanuel-Loo 管理。Frank Caro 將畫廊重新命名為 C. T. Loo Chinese Art。
1961 年，盧氏繼承人與 Caro 發生爭執，具體內容至今不明，導致 C. T. Loo Chinese Art 關閉，並在 Park Bernet Galleries 拍賣公司股票。Caro 透過拍賣會或與盧氏家族的私人協定購入藏品，並繼續銷售中國古董，其中包括盧芹齋最初從中國帶出的藏品。
以 Frank Caro Chinese Art 的名義經營，客戶繼續稱 Caro 的畫廊為 C. T. Loo & Company，直到 1980 年代關閉為止。
在巴黎，Jeanine Emmanuel-Loo 繼續掌管畫廊，交替使用 C. T. Loo & Cie, Art Ancien de Chine；C.T. Loo & Cie., Arts d'Asie；以及 Galerie C. T. Loo & Cie。2002 年，盧氏家族決定透過佳士得拍賣會出售寶塔及其內含物品，然而在最後一刻卻選擇不進行拍賣。寶塔則繼續關閉 (Lenain, G., 2013, 255)。C.T. Loo 的商業帝國隨著這次關閉而正式結束，但他的事業遺產仍在繼續。
In 1928, Loo hired Frank Caro (1904-1980) as a gallery assistant and photographer in his New York office. Caro ultimately took on managerial responsibilities at C. T. Loo & Company, New York. In 1946, Loo transferred the management of C. T. Loo & Cie., Paris to his youngest daughter Janine Emmanuel Loo, as France enacted a law prohibiting foreign nationals from owning businesses (Lenain, G., 2013, p. 146).
Through the 1940s, Loo’s business began to decline as his supply chains in China began to weaken. Even though Loo, in 1945, received China’s highest level of recognition, earning the Order of Victory (Lenain, G., 2013, p. 185), his fate in China took a sudden turn. On July 29, 1948, the Shanghai Museum confiscated 17 crates of Chinese antiquities belonging to Lu Wu Antiquities Company that were bound for Paris (Lenain, G., 2013, p.189). Shortly after this seizure, Loo was accused of stealing Chinese art and depriving China of its cultural heritage. Loo defended himself, writing in the journal Art News, that he never removed objects from sites, rather he purchased antiquities on the open market. He further defended his actions, noting that the works he sold would “be preserved for posterity” around the world. Loo championed his sale of Chinese antiquities, stating:
I firmly believe that all works of art have no frontier. They go around the World as silent ambassadors, enabling other people to understand the great culture of the Chinese and China. (Art News, 1950)
Loo was banned from returning to the country. Shortly after this declaration, the Shanghai Municipal Committee of Relics Management confiscated more than 3000 objects that remained in Luwu’s Shanghai warehouse (Zheng, C., 2003, pp. 414-415). These dramatic events led C. T. Loo to change his business model.
After the seizure of his Chinese inventory, Loo closed C. T. Loo & Company and began operating exclusively as C. T. Loo, INC. In March of 1950, he formally announced his retirement from C. T. Loo & Company and a liquidation sale of his New York inventory. At this time, he operated as C. T. Loo, INC., separating his personal and business assets. For unknown reasons, Loo changed his mind and decided that his galleries should carry on.
On September 1, 1952, Loo reopened his galleries as two separately functioning branches in New York and Paris. Frank Caro, his assistant for more than 25 years managed the New York branch as C. T. Loo Chinese Art and Janine Emanuel-Loo continued managing the Parisian gallery, C.T. Loo & Cie., Art Ancien de Chine with the assistance of Michel Berudeley (1911-2012)
After 1952, Loo partially retired, though he continued to correspond with clients, encourage purchases, and advise both the managers of the New York and Parisian galleries. In 1953, C. T. Loo began – but did not complete – writing his memoirs with the assistance of Jeannine Auboyer (1912-1990), curator of the National Asian Arts Museum — Guimet. In this unfinished manuscript, Loo recounts – albeit in an embellished manner – his pioneering efforts in the sale of Chinese antiquities.
After Loo’s death in 1957, his legacy carried on. The Loo family inherited C. T. Loo & Company, New York and Paris and the galleries operated under the management of Frank Caro and Janine Emanuel-Loo. Frank Caro renamed the gallery C. T. Loo Chinese Art. In 1961 a disagreement – the specifics of which remain unknown – between the Loo heirs and Caro, leading to the closure of C. T. Loo Chinese Art and an auction of the company’s stock at the Park Bernet Galleries. Caro purchased objects either through the sale or in a private agreement with the family and continued to sell Chinese antiquities, counting objects that C. T. Loo originally brought out of China amongst his stock.
Operating as Frank Caro Chinese Art, clients continued to refer to Caro’s gallery as C. T. Loo & Company until its closure in the 1980s.
In Paris, Jeanine Emmanuel-Loo continued to steward the gallery, known interchangeably as C. T. Loo & Cie, Art Ancien de Chine; C.T. Loo & Cie., Arts d’Asie; and Galerie C. T. Loo & Cie. In 2002, the Loo family decided to sell the Pagoda and its contents through Christie’s, however, at the last moment chose not to proceed. The pagoda, however, remained closed (Lenain, G., 2013, 255). The C.T. Loo business empire officially ended with this closure, but the legacy of his endeavors continues.
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