Page 308 - Chinese Works of Art Chritie's Mar. 22-23 2018

PROPERTY FROM THE FAMILY COLLECTION OF GENERAL JOSEPH W. STILWELL
976
A MAGNIFICENT IMPERIAL YELLOW KESI TWELVE-SYMBOL
DRAGON ROBE MADE FOR THE EMPEROR, LONGPAO
JIAQING PERIOD (1796-1820)
The kesi ground is woven in shades of blue, violet, red, pink and gold threads
with nine fve-clawed dragons clutching or confronting faming pearls on a
densely patterned ground of stylized wan emblems and forets in quatrefoil
borders amidst clusters of ruyi-shaped clouds interspersed with bats, shou
characters, and auspicious emblems. The Twelve Symbols of Imperial
Authority are arranged in three groups of four: the sun, the moon, constellation
and mountain around the neck; the fu symbol, axe, paired dragons, and golden
pheasant around the body; and the pair of libation cups, aquatic grass, grains
of millet and fames, all reserved on a bright yellow ground above the Eight
Buddhist Emblems rising from the terrestrial diagram and lishui stripe at the
hen; with midnight-blue cufs and collar decorated with further dragons and
clouds.
59º x 75æ in. (150.4 x 192.4 cm.)

$80,000-120,000

PROVENANCE
The Collection of General Joseph W. Stilwell (1883-1946), acquired in the early
twentieth century, and thence by descent within the family.
清嘉慶 御製緙絲金龍十二章龍袍
The Twelve Ancient Symbols of Imperial Authority frst appeared on the
Manchu emperor’s clothing after 1759. The Huangchao liqi tushi (Illustrated
Precedents for the Ritual Paraphernalia of the Imperial Court), which was
enforced in 1766, restricted the use of the Twelve Symbols to the Emperor.
The symbols imply the notion of Imperial authority, signifying that the
Emperor is the Ruler of the Universe. In the Qing dynasty, the frst four
symbols- sun, moon, stars, and mountain-were placed at the shoulders,
chest and mid-back; the symbol of distinction (fu), hatchet, paired dragons,
and the golden pheasant appeared at waist level; and temple-cups, aquatic
grass, grains of millet, and fames were placed at knee level on the skirts of
the coat.
The current kesi robe is a spectacular example of a late 18th-early 19th
century Emperor’s longpao. The dragons are worked in metallic gold threads
with clouds woven almost exclusively in shades of blue against a yellow
ground. The “fve colors” of the clouds have been rendered as small color
accents throughout. The reasons for this variation were not recorded and
most likely refected fashionable tastes, rather than ritual requirements.
Among the earliest examples of the predominant blue and yellow schema
for an emperor’s twelve-symbol dragon robe is an embroidered satin robe
in a private London collection that dates to the late eighteenth century. See
Dickinson and Wrigglesworth, p. 33. However, most surviving pieces date
from the nineteenth century. See J. E. Vollmer, Decoding Dragons: Status
Garments in Ch’ing dynasty China, Eugene, Oregon, Museum of Art, 1983.
pp. 143 and 209.

The present robe is particularly rare in that it has the added wan-emblem
background, unlike most published examples which are reserved on a plain
yellow ground. A related embroidered dragon robe on a similarly ornate foral
trellis ground, was sold at Christie’s 22 March 2007, lot 459. An example of
a dragon robe with plain yellow ground is in the National Museum of History,
and illustrated by Chen Cheng-Hsiung, Imperial Costumes of the Qing
Dynasty, 2008, p. 28, no. 5.

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