A VERY RARE AND EXCEPTIONAL DRAGON BADGE, BUZI
THE PROPERTY OF A PRIVATE CALIFORNIA COLLECTOR
A VERY RARE AND EXCEPTIONAL DRAGON BADGE, BUZI

WANLI PERIOD (1573-1619)

Details
A VERY RARE AND EXCEPTIONAL DRAGON BADGE, BUZI
WANLI PERIOD (1573-1619)
The badge is finely woven with a winged and horned front-facing and five-clawed yinglong dragon chasing a flaming pearl, with both horns and wings, striding amidst lingzhi scroll, all above rocks emerging from roiling waves.
The badge 14 ½ in. x 14 1/8 in. (36.8 x 36.1 cm.), mounted and glazed
Provenance
CP Ching, Hong Kong, acquired in 2009.

Lot Essay

The present badge features a rare yinglong dragon, which refers to dragons with wings and horns, which was thought to be a rain deity. Winged dragon badges are thought to be of the rarest types of festival badges, which were worn by the Imperial court for the Winter Solstice.

A similarly worked dragon, but without the rare wings featured on the present badge and on a different silk ground, is in the University of Alberta Museums, Mactaggart Art Collection, and is published by J. Vollmer and J. Simcox, Emblems of Empire: Selections from the Mactaggart Art Collection, Edmonton, Canada, 2009, p. 54.

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