Bedcover of embroidered silk satin, China, ca. 1900-1930

Bedcover of stone-coloured satin embroidered with coloured silks in long and short, satin, stem and split stitches, with laid and couched work. In the centre of the shawls is large bird (a phoenix or a peacock) displaying its tail feathers. The rest of the shawl is filled with birds of various kinds perched on the ground or on sprays of peonies, bamboo, roses, prunus blossom and other flowers. The flowers are mainly worked in pinks and whites, with the leaves in yellows, light browns and pale blues. The birds are more richly coloured but the general tonal effect is rather subdued with occasional details standing out, mostly in dark blues or black.

Around the edge is a border of ivy leaves and tendrils arranged on intertwining wavy stems, worked in yellowish browns, pale-blues, light greys and greens and white. The cover, which was intended for decoration, is bordered with a deep knotted stone-coloured silk fringe and lined with stone-coloured satin.

Given by Miss Frances R Wills

The Arts Institute of Minneapolis has similar embroidered bed cover, embroidery on black silk, dated to the 19th century.

This very large decorative textile could have been used as a bedcover or a throw. The embroidery is worked on a dense, cream satin. It is lined and is edged with a deep fringe and an ivy-leaf trailing border.

The subject matter — birds flocking around the phoenix — is one that has recurred in Chinese painting since the Ming Dynasty. This theme underwent a revival in the 20th century.

This piece, with its brightly coloured embroidery, may have been made for export. Unlike many other export textiles however, the level of detail and the variety of stitches in this cover show that much care was taken to produce a textile of high quality.

T.108-1962