A PAIR OF EMBROIDERED BLACK SATIN YUANSHIKAI ROUNDELS

YUANSHIKAI PERIOD (1912-1915)

Details

A PAIR OF EMBROIDERED BLACK SATIN YUANSHIKAI ROUNDELS
YUANSHIKAI PERIOD (1912-1915)
Each embroidered in satin stitch in multicolored silk floss with seven of the twelve Imperial symbols including the fu surrounded by the pair of temple cups (combined into one cup), the flames, the aquatic grass, the golden pheasant, the grains of millet, and the axe, all amidst clouds of turquoise, green, lavender and pale salmon color within a similar cloud border
8 in. (20.3 cm.) diam., one mounted (2)

Further details

See illustration of one

Lot Essay

These roundels were made to be worn by officials during the traditional seasonal sacrifices reinstated by Yuanshikai shortly after he became first President of the Chinese Republic in 1912. The lower the status of the official, the fewer roundels on his robe and the fewer traditional symbols of Imperial authority included in the roundel, with twelve being the highest number for roundels and symbols. Several roundels of this type displaying varying numbers of symbols are illustrated by B. Jackson and D. Hughes, Ph.D., Ladder to the Clouds, Berkeley, 1999, pp. 286-9.

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