Imperial Nobleman’s Semi-Formal Court Robe
Unknown Chinese, Chinese
1919
Purple silk, gold and silver metallic thread
Overall: 54 3/4 × 87 1/8 in. (139.1 × 221.3 cm)
Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth: Gift of Patricia Lerner, in memory of her father, Edgar Spring Winters, Class of 1916
175.17.25597
Geography
Place Made: China, East Asia, Asia
Period
20th century
Object Name
Clothing: Outerwear
Research Area
Asia
Not on view
Label
This robe is considered a modern reproduction of the traditional jifu 吉服, which translates to “festive dress.” Historically, this type of robe was worn during special events such as festivals or banquets. Alongside auspicious motifs like the clouds, mythical flowers, and longevity characters embroidered all over this robe, the foregrounded dragon symbolizes the high social status of the wearer. Only the emperor, empress, or empress dowager could wear yellow robes adorned with nine five-clawed dragons. This regulation remained in place until the late 1800s, when it was discarded amidst China’s ongoing political turmoil.
From the 2024 exhibition Attitude of Coexistence: Non-Humans in East Asian Art, curated by Haely Chang, Jane and Raphael Bernstein Associate Curator of East Asian Art
Course History
ANTH 57, Origins of Inequality, Alan Covey, Winter 2013
Exhibition History
Attitude of Coexistence: Non-humans in East Asian Art, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, November 16, 2024-February 23, 2025.
Objects and Power: Manifestations of Inequality, a student curated exhibition, Professor Alan Covey, ANTH 57, Winter 2013, Harrington Gallery Teaching Exhibition, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, April 10-August 25, 2013.
Provenance
Collected by Edgar Spring Winters [1890-1969], ca. 1916-1919; given to his daughter, Patricia Lerner, Williamsville, New York; given to present collection, 1975.
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