Imperial Noblewoman’s Summer Surcoat

Object Details

• Label

  Surcoats such as this were worn by women of the imperial household, including consorts and wives of high-ranking imperial nobles. The simple construction of the coat is ideal to display pictorial insignia of rank, such as the dragon roundels here. Both the total number of roundels and the number of the dragons' claws indicate the wearer's rank at court. The five-clawed dragons seen here are a special imperial privilege. Coats such as this were worn over floor-length court robes to add greater formality to the costume.

• Provenance

  From about 1930 to 1990

  Private collector, California, from about 1930 [1]

  1990

  Sale, Butterfield & Butterfield, San Francisco, “Fine Oriental Works of Art,” November 2, 1990, lot 3119 (ill.): “Blue Ground Gauze Robe with Dragon Medallions, 19th century” [1]

  From 1990 to 1992

  Linda Wrigglesworth, Chinese Costume and Textiles, London, purchased through Kathy Judkings at Butterfield & Butterfield on November 2, 1990 [2]

  From 1992

  Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, purchased from Linda Wrigglesworth on March 10, 1992 [3]

  Notes:

  [1] According to Linda Wrigglesworth, Chinese Costume and Textiles, London, Butterfield & Butterfield’s representative Dessa Goddard stated that the robe was consigned in the 1990 Butterfield’s auction by an elderly California woman who had had the robe in her possession for approximately sixty years, see Memo from J. Stuart to M. Beach, March 30, 1992, in the object file.

  [2] See memo cited in note 1.

  [3] See Invoice issued by Linda Wrigglesworth, Chinese Costumes and Textiles, to Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, March 10, 1992, in object file.

• Collection

  National Museum of Asian Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Family Matters: Portraits from the Qing Court (June 11, 2011 to January 16, 2012)

  Worshipping the Ancestors: Chinese Commemorative Portraits (June 17 to September 9, 2001)

  The Arts of China (November 18, 1990 to September 7, 2014)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Butterfield & Butterfield (founded 1865)

  Linda Wrigglesworth

• Origin

  Suzhou, Hangzhou, or Nanjing, China

• Credit Line

  Purchase — funds provided by an anonymous donor

• Type

  Costume and Textile

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1820s, 1850s

• Name

  Butterfield & Butterfield, Wrigglesworth, Linda

• Place

  China, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Nanjing

• Topic

  Gauze, Embroidery, Art, Chinese Art, Qing dynasty (1644 - 1911), Couching (embroidering), Dragon, Daoguang reign (1821 - 1850)

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Costume, Textiles