A red-ground silk woven 'dragon' robe, Qing dynasty, 18th century | 清十八世紀 大紅地緙絲彩織八團龍袍

Geng Zhi Tang Collection.

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The current kesi robe is a rare example of a jifu (semi-formal robe) for noble ladies within the Qing imperial family. The robe is decorated with eight dragon roundels, three in the front, three at the back and two at each shoulder, all above the mountain and wave patterns at the bottom, a formal design exclusive for imperial ladies in the Qing court. The dragons on this robe each have two claws, indicating that it was made for a concubine of the emperor's grandson or great-grandson. The two-claw dragon was not formally included in the Qing regulations published during the mid-Qianlong period, leaving very few extant examples.

The only example with two-claw dragons found in publications is a green jifu robe from the Qing imperial collection and now in the Palace Museum, Beijing, as illustrated in Qingdai gongting fushi / Costumes and Accessories of the Qing court, Hong Kong, 2005, pl. 111. Compare also a robe with similar pattern, but with four-claw dragon, illustrated in Wang Jinhua, Zhongguo chuantong fushi. Qingdai fuzhuang [Traditional Chinese costumes. Qing costumes], Beijing, 2015, pp 66–67; another example, also on a red ground but decorated with medallions of plum blossoms, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum, from the Qing imperial collection, with a yellow note attached and dated to Daoguang period, illustrated in Gugong fushi tudian / Illustrated Dictionary of Qing Dynasty Court Costumes, Beijing, 2018, pl. 65.