Period:Qing dynasty (1644–1911)
Date:18th century
Culture:China
Medium:Silk, metallic thread, and feather tapestry (kesi)
Dimensions:Overall: 28 1/2 x 37 in. (72.4 x 94 cm)
Classification:Textiles-Tapestries
Credit Line:Gift of Edna Bahr, 1962
Accession Number:62.97.49
The autumn plants in the main decorative area of this table valance appear in a garden setting with rocks and a stream; a pair of birds, whose backs are woven with feathers, flutter among the branches at the right. The overhanging upper register of the valance features an entirely different pattern: the attributes of the Eight Daoist Immortals, beribboned and interspersed with clouds and bats, are seen on either side of the central motif of a bat holding a canopy.