Image

Chinese Qing, China

Jiangyi (robe of descent), 1800s

Description

Maker

Culture

Chinese

Title

Jiangyi (robe of descent)

Year

1800s

Medium

Silk, gilt paper, metallic yarn; satin weave, embroidered, satin stich, couching

Materials/Techniques

Dimensions

Center back length: 143.5 cm (56 1/2 inches) (with collar)

Place

China

Type

Credit

Gift of Miss Lucy T. Aldrich

Object Number

35.415

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

From the Land of the Immortals

January 13 - April 22, 2012

In addition to the square patch traditionally associated with Taoist jiangyi robes, this robe features colorful butterflies (symbols of change and transformation as well
as of love) and flowers (lotus or peonies) and is trimmed with black borders embroidered with yarn made of gold wrapped around a silk core.

The character Shou (longevity) appears at the back of the neck, and the Eight Trigrams fill the side borders. These ancient Chinese symbols are borrowed from the Yijing (I-Ching or Book of Changes), a divinatory text used in Taoist cosmology to illustrate fundamental elements of reality by different combinations of continuous (yang) and broken (yin) lines. At bottom are a variety of auspicious symbols, including eternity knots, dragons, and tigers.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Jiangyi (robe of descent) with the accession number of 35.415. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.