Antique Chinese Silk Embroidery Panel - Framed - Late 18th / Early 19th Century

£195.00 Buy It Now, £14.20 Shipping, eBay Money Back Guarantee
Seller: only_the_best_things ✉️ (244) 100%, Location: Eastbourne, GB, Ships to: GB, Item: 363547652789 Antique Chinese Silk Embroidery Panel - Framed - Late 18th / Early 19th Century. Here we have an utterly beautiful Chinese silk embroidery. The frame size is approximately 36cm x 25cm, and the visible area of the print is 25.5cm x 15cm - although it could be larger where it may be hidden behind the mount. I have not opened it up. There's a handwritten (in pencil) '1794' on the rear of the frame. I do not know if this is a date, or a lot number. I had it appraised a couple of years ago by a couple of dealers, and here is what the first person (Kevin Page, London) said : "It's an interesting embroidery, it certainly has a mystique about it. We are not experts on on Chinese embroideries as we tend to deal more in Japanese, but I can tell you what I know.
The subject is of an elegant Chinese lady in what looks like it could be Yuan Dynasty dress (1271-1368AD) this was when China was ruled by the Mongols. However the embroidery is not quite that old, it certainly has age to it Kevin thinks it could be early 19th century possibly even late 18th century.

She seems to be enjoying prunus blossom and butterflies in a garden of contemplation with a stream and small pagoda in the background. In Mandarin the word for butterfly is similar to the word for seventy so it symbolizes long life, it can also represent young love. Prunus blossom symbolizes perseverance and resilience in the face of adversity.  If she is indeed dressed in clothing from the time of Mongol rule we might interpret those symbols as being quite poignant.

From the mount it looks like this is quite a small embroidery? It looks like it may have once been part of a larger piece, or formed part of a piece of clothing such as a decorative sleeve."
It was then appraised by John Axford (of Antiques Roadshow fame) who is a leading expert in Asian Art and said : "...  The embroidery appears to date from the first half of the 19th century and is rather nice.   It does appear to have been cut from a larger piece as some of the decoration, particularly on the right hand side, has been cut off.... I do hope this is some help" I don't have the time to do further research, plus I'm having a clear out of all my framed items as we've moved to smaller house - and here we are.  It's certainly an utterly beautiful piece which clearly took someone hundreds of hours to embroider by hand. It's a piece of history and needs to be looked after for future generations to admire. Many thanks for looking! :)
  • Region of Origin: Chinese

PicClick Insights - Antique Chinese Silk Embroidery Panel - Framed - Late 18th / Early 19th Century PicClick Exclusive

  •  Popularity - 15 watchers, 0.0 new watchers per day, 923 days for sale on eBay. Super high amount watching. 0 sold, 1 available.
  •  Best Price -
  •  Seller - 244+ items sold. 0% negative feedback. Great seller with very good positive feedback and over 50 ratings.

People Also Loved PicClick Exclusive