Description and Details
A rare uncut panel of Chinese export silk embroidery, dating to approximately 1900–1920, during the late Qing dynasty or early Republic period. The embroidered garment components remain together on their original cream silk damask ground, preserving the workshop layout before they were cut out and assembled.
Faint original ink guidelines show how the coordinated pieces were arranged for a tunic or robe. The layout includes a large figurative roundel, long matching sleeve bands, placket borders and geometric side gussets. Its survival as an uncut panel allows the relationship between these components to be seen, rather than encountering them separately as detached garment trimmings.
The embroidery combines fine satin stitch with traditional knotwork, often called “forbidden stitch”, in indigo blue, jade green, coral and magenta. Figural scenes unfold among garden pavilions, bridges and lakeside terraces, with weeping willows and flowering peonies framing the compositions.
On the reverse is an original red ink workshop stamp reading 長發, “Chang Fa”, translated as “Long Prosperity”. This surviving mark adds a further connection to the commercial embroidery workshop that produced the panel, alongside the ink layout lines on the silk.
The uncut panel is in excellent condition, with no marks or damage. The sleeve panel measures approximately 88 × 76 cm (34¾ × 30 inches).
