Object class: Needlework (visual works) / Donor: Ilse Martin Fang / Function: 2.2 Personal Adornments and Accoutrements - Hearst Museum Portal Search Results

Start Over Object class Needlework (visual works) Donor Ilse Martin Fang Function 2.2 Personal Adornments and Accoutrements

Hearst Museum object titled Case, accession number 9-21262a,b, described as Rectangular suspended case for keys or hair pins. a) Outer case: moon blue silk gauze appliqued with a peony design of many colored, overlaid threads in up to three layers. One side emphasizes pink, the other, green. The straight sides have the same kind of applique, but on black broadcloth, and with a bud and leaf pattern. The top has only leaves. Fide: Ilse M. Fang, 8/28/2001: very, very fine embroidery. Pattern on sides may be crabapples - there are four petals; here only three are shown; you infer the presence of the fourth behind these three. Embroidery on cover is appliqued on - you can see edges with tiny stitches and with couching. I don’t know of any factories that do this kind of embroidery. There are factories for weaving brocade, but not for this kind of embroidery. The stiff case lined with hot-pink cotton. b) Inner case: covered with sapphire blue satin. In front, two doors open at medium height. They reveal two compartments lined with the same hot pink cotton as the outer case. The vertical center duct conceals the carrying cords. The 44 cm long burnt sienna double cord forms a loop above. When it emerges from the bottom of the inner case, it runs through an imitation coral bead and a winding in the traditional three colors: white, blue and black. Then the two ends split and after 2.3 cm are once more wound with threads in the traditional three colors. They are simply cut off after a further 5 cm. Height of outer case: 12 cm; width: 7 cm; depth: 1.5 cm.

Hearst Museum object titled Collar, accession number 9-21299, described as Collar; four-lobed; ivory satin in cloud shape; bordered with brown satin around woven sea-green tape scalloped on one side and, between two fine brown lines, the running patterns of red dots on black bars and blue and red flowers. Closed in front with two brown frogs. Front and rear panels: peonies in shades of blue and white. Shoulder panels: same around overlaid gold threads outlining double coins and a Ju-i scepter. Lobes connected below with tabs. Collar lined vermillion. D. neck opening: 9 cm. aize 34 cm.

Hearst Museum object titled Kerchief faces, accession number 9-21276a-d, described as Kerchief faces. Two pairs of embroidered ornamental kerchief faces. Each quadrangular panel consists of two triangles sewn together. Brocaded gauze throughout. Background pattern: swastikas (10,000 for long life) between I-beams (symbols for Thunder). a,b: Lavender quadrangle over apple-green broad chevron. Quadrangle brocaded with a tripod decorated with the monad on a grill pattern. c,d: Purple and lavender chevron with cloud ends on apple-green background. Woven-in decorations: Coin (top), spade money, part of Han end-tiles. Top figure on other side unidentified. Spade money and coin below. Length of center seam: 21.5 cm; width 14.5 cm.

Hearst Museum object titled Mirror case, accession number 9-21259, described as Mirror case, red. Satin stitch embroidery on satin, with gold thread for the latticework in the balustrade. A seated lady holds a horizontal scroll or fabric; a boy hands her a flower in the shape of a “ju-i” (scepter to fulfill one’s wishes). On left, a pine grows from a rock, while on right, a vase holds a flowering sprig. Fide: Ilse Fang, 8/28/2001: The orchid at right symbolizes chastity, so the woman is connected to this. Pine trees generally mean perseverance; pine trees growing on rock means perseverance. The broken ice / swastika pattern are buddhist / chinese symbols for long life. Back: wine-red silk. Both front and back padded and lined, with broad black border, except for the top opening, where the back has no border. Ends of opening reinforced with black web. Fide: Ilse M. Fang, 8/28/2001: Case is silk with cotton padding. Diameter: 21 cm.

Hearst Museum object titled Pair of red âho-paoâ (perfume) pouches, accession number 9-21274a-g, described as a & b: Pair of red “ho-pao” (perfume) pouches. Kidney-shape, characteristic of “ho-pao”, attained by gathering the neck of the vase-shaped bag in up to 15 folds, here 7. Drawstring (s) missing. Identical front and back have peony applique in various shades of green and tinted white satin. Anthers in long stitch and Peking knots. Pouch lined with red cotton material, top edge with silk. Width: 9.5cm; height: 8cm. c: Red-and-blue purse. Bottom: red satin with appliqued peony, some Peking knots, and stem stitch. Top: blue satin sewn over the red with forward stitching and 0.5cm farther up, a row of sets of 3 running stitches, all in mouse grey. Top opening of purse rounded. Sides stiffened with cardboard and lined with sized-cotton fabric in off-white. Width at bottom: 7cm; at top: 8.5cm; greatest height: 9.1cm. d & e: Round case, for thumb ring for archery? d: Bottom part covered with sapphire-blue satin; lined with moon-blue, glazed cotton fabric, glued in. e: Lid covered with red satin. Sides decorated with appliqued peonies in green, aquamarine and variously tinted white satin, and Peking knots for anthers. Top has a coin applique of white and blue strips of satin. The 24.5cm long double hanging-cord is yellow which suggests use by a member of the imperial family. Two 15cm long ends of cord hang down from the blue box. They are wound with wired threads in the traditional color scheme of white, blueand black; first togethr, then separately. The ends are simply cut and frayed. Lid: 4.2cm diameter, 5.1cm H. f: Fan case, containing g. Red satin with applique of greenish, maize, and sometimes tinted, white satin. Also satin stitch and Peking knots. Pattern: Bat over peonies and other flowers. Open top edge in cloud form. The original yellow cord-hanger, suggesting use by a member of the imperial family, has been cut off. Black velvet lining. Length: 27.5cm; width of cloud: 5cm; bottom: 2.3cm. g: Stick for circular fan, rests inside f. Hard, but light wood, lacquered dark brown (olive wood?). Split starts in the center of Han-tile shaped plaque at top of handle. Above it, two verses: “On an autumnal day halfway through the year, the Five Lakes have the appearance of fall; I lay away my fishing pole, and in the west wind the landscape seems utterly deserted.” Of the writing on the othr prong, only good-luck wishes are legible. A rivet in the center of the Han tile on top is to pierce the silk of the fan. Overall length: 24.7cm; diameter of the Han tile: 2.3cm.

Hearst Museum object titled Pouch, accession number 9-21266, described as Gourd-shaped tobacco pouch. Peach colored satin front with green bamboo embroidered in satin, stem, and long stitch. Sapphire blue satin back quotes the verse, “With the slanting belt of peach blossoms, the whole creek is covered with smoke” by Littlehill (Hsiao Shan) in white satin stitch embroidery. (Fide: Ilse Fang, 8/28/2001, character for “smoke” is same as for “haze”. Also, gourds have medical, poisonous, or refreshing characteristics - and the spirit who dispels evil spirits has a gourd - so gourds can hold something spiritual and effective.) The gourd is outlined with a blue and white tape. It combines the bottom parts, but frames the top two sections separately. Tacks over bottom part and in two different places right and left above, allow just one finger to be inserted to pick out the tobacco. The 25.5 cm long, looped hanging cord suggests that this pouch was to be worn from the shoulder button of a Manchu tunic.

Hearst Museum object titled Pouch, accession number 9-21270, described as Man’s leather pouch (to be worn on belt). Back trapeze-shaped buffalo (?) leather, edged with donkey skin. Unlined. Rounded corners. Front wider on top but gathered with a fold into the same shape as the back. Heavy white silk cord runs through two times three holes in front, two holes in back, where the loop can be fastened to the belt. A center panel of doubled brownish cotton-cloth creates two compartments. Front completely covered with split-stitch embroidery on terrra cotta colored silk. The words “A container for a whole mass of Treasures” appear in the lower half among flowers. Wider donkey skin triple-stitched; front holes leather-reinforced. Pouch 19 cm wide at bottom;16.5 at top; height 15 cm.

Hearst Museum object titled Purse, accession number 9-21272, described as Two-faced purse with flaps, probably for flint and tinder. Yellow satin embroidered in satin and stem stitch. One side shows an angler at a pine-banked water with a hut in the background. Fish and fowl below. The other flap shows the flower girl with her basket by the side of a water with the porch of a building in the background. Fish and duck on lower part. Body bordered with 2 cm long black bias stitches, darned on the angler’s side with two rows of white diamonds; on the other side with zigzag-and-hook as a running pattern. That side’s flap continues the zigzag and adds chevron and a four-petaled flower. On the angler’s side, the flap border alternates darned diamonds with another flower, both in white. Under the flaps, the borders of the body are plain black. (Fide: Ilse M. Fang, 8/28/2001: I always loved this - it’s very practical - there are the embroidered scenes, but when you open the purse, there’s no embroidery under the flaps: very practical.) Center compartment lined with coarse, moon-blue cotton, as is the underside of the flaps, and back of the shallow compartments under them. The front of these compartments is unlined. No signs of hanging straps. Was one flap to be tucked over the belt? Purse 12 cm wide and 11.5 cm high.

Hearst Museum object titled Purse, accession number 9-21260, described as Red-fronted, almost oval purse. Back: two layers of coarse, unbleached cotton fabric which also constitutes the lining of the front. Front: fine scarlet silk satin over black broadcloth, framed in embroidered faded light blue and black diamond pattern. This frame holds together front and back over more than half the height, the top covering only the front. The ends of the top opening secured with unbleached coarse cotton webbing. No signs of a former existence of carrying straps. Embroidery in satin and Peking knot stitch in black and various shades of grey and blue. Pattern: two butterflies flanking a peony. Fide: Ilse Fang, 8/28/2001: Coarser stitching, fewer Peking knots mark this embroidery as less fine than that in some other pieces. Probably made by a mother or sister; commercial factories were only for finer things; otherwise, they were done by the women of the house. Around edge may by ribbon; different types of ribbons sometimes used on things; or, it may be embroidery. Can’t tell which here. Width at tabs: 14 cm. Height: 9.5 cm.

Hearst Museum object titled Scarf, accession number 9-21245, described as Red silk scarf. Woven in one piece. Double gold thread shot through at ends and again over the waffle pattern in two, then three, then again two rows. Patterned silk reversibly embroidered in shades of blue and silver in satin stitch. A variety of flowers and squash around a peony, with slight differences on the two ends. Overall length: 119 cm; width at set of gold threads: 36 cm.