A blue-ground silk embroidered 'dragon' robe, 17th century | 十七世紀 石青地妝花緞彩雲金蟒袍

Geng Zhi Tang Collection.

耕織堂收藏

Chang Foundation Museum, Taipei, 1999.

Foguangyuan Art Gallery, Melbourne, 2001.

Nantian Temple Exhibition Hall, Sydney, 2002.

鴻禧美術館，台北，1999年

佛光緣美術館，墨爾本，2001年

南天寺，悉尼，2002年

A rare and unusual example of a late Ming dynasty dragon garment, the present robe is decorated with four-clawed dragons, known as mang. In the Ming dynasty, robes were carefully regulated in terms of design, particularly those with designs of dragons and other animals, to distinguish the status of wearer. According to Ming regulations, the present robe would have been reserved for certain princes and high-ranking noble-men.

This robe is made of 'decorated' satin, known as zhuanghua duan. By using discontinuous wefts, colorful patterns are 'incised' into the satin. In addition, flat gold or gold-wrapped thread is used to make the satin more attractive. The production of such duan required massive labor. According to a modern experiment, weaving a robe based on the dimensions and design of a similar fabric discovered in the Dingling tomb of the Ming Wanli Emperor required experienced weavers approximately 270 working days to complete, see Gao Hanyu, 'Technical and Artistic Development of Chinese Patterned Silk', in Jinxiu luoyi qiao Tiangong / Heavens' Embroidered Cloths. One Thousand Years of Chinese Textiles, Hong Kong, 1995, p. 45.

Only a limited number of Ming dragon robes are found today, likely because they were highly treasured by the owners and therefore buried with them. Many Ming dragon robes that have survived were brought to Tibet as gifts and re-cut into the narrower-sleeved Tibetan chuba style, such as the present lot.

Compare an uncut dark-blue robe material with mang design, attributed to late Ming period, in the China National Silk Museum, Hangzhou, illustrated in Zhao Feng, Zhixiu zhenpin / Treasures in Silk, Hong Kong, 1999, pl. 09.05; another early Qing example, illustrated in Valery M. Garrett, Chinese Clothing. An Illustrated Guide, Oxford, 1994, fig. 3.6, p. 37.

此為明末蟒袍，稀見無多。明代服飾制度嚴格，尤以龍紋及其他珍禽瑞獸為飾者，須與穿者階銜嚴加匹配。據明代禮制，四爪龍為蟒，僅部分皇子及親王貴胄可服用。

此袍以妝花緞製，以不連續緯綫織成彩色圖案，效果仿如在緞面刻花，又採金線或包金線，更見絢爛。妝花緞織造不易，耗工費時；經現代實驗測試，製一件尺寸及物料與大明萬曆帝（1573-1620年在位）定陵所出織品相近之袍服，需多位巧匠合力約 270 日方可成衣（高漢玉，〈 Technical and Artistic Development of Chinese Patterned Silk〉，載於《錦繡羅衣巧天工》 ，香港，1995年，頁45）。

明代龍紋袍服存世例甚少，或因袍服深受物主珍重，多已隨葬。少量袍服得以傳世，乃因送入西藏作贈禮，於當地經重新剪裁，改為窄袖楚巴式樣，恰如此件。

比一未經剪裁之石青地蟒袍料，斷代明末，藏中國絲綢博物館，杭州，載趙峰，《織繡珍品》，香港，1999年，圖版09.05；另一明末例，載Valery M. Garrett，《Chinese Clothing: An Illustrated Guide》，牛津，1994 年，圖 3.6，頁 37。