Period:Qing dynasty (1644–1911)
Date:early 18th century
Culture:China
Medium:Silk and metallic-thread embroidery on silk satin
Dimensions:72 x 25 1/4 in. (182.88 x 64.14 cm)
Classification:Textiles-Embroidered
Credit Line:Gift of Francis Keally, in memory of his wife, Mildred Taber Keally, 1978
Accession Number:1978.211.1
The length of this chair strip is divided into segments, with a different design for each part of the chair being covered-the front legs, seat, and back, and a short segment that hangs behind the chair. The theme of the "hundred antiques, " embroidered onto the dark blue satin, is especially finely executed on the segment that would cover the back of the chair. There, ritual bronzes flank a tall vase containing tree peonies. Auspicious birds are mixed in with the still-life elements: a mandarin duck stands on one foot on a rock next to the tall vase, and at the top of the chair strip, upside down because it would have hung behind the chair, a crane stands in a vessel containing waves. Both these birds have favorable associations, the mandarin duck with conjugal harmony and the crane with long life, and both are insignia of rank for governmental officials.