The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 16, 2024

Tibetan Man's Robe, Chuba

Tibetan Man's Robe, Chuba

late 1600s
(1644-1911), Kangxi period (1662-1772)
Silk, gilt-metal thread of two kinds: satin weave with supplementary weft patterning
width across shoulders: 189.9 cm (74 3/4 in.); length back of neck to hem: 152.4 cm (60 in.)
Norman O. Stone and Ella A. Stone Memorial Fund 2007.216
Location: not on view

Description

This magnificent robe for a Tibetan lama or an aristocrat was originally a Chinese imperial wall hanging. Tibetan tailors cut it into 60 separate units, reassembling the fabric for a completely new and bold design. The wearer of such a garment must have impressed bystanders by his striking appearance. What you see here is the robe’s back side.

Textiles played an important role in Chinese diplomacy with foreign governments. Diplomatic gifts of silk served to pacify border populations and to maintain balanced power relationships. Over centuries the Chinese court endeavored to keep a stable relationship with powerful Tibetan Buddhists. During the Qing dynasty (1644–1911) the Chinese court began to send gifts of court garments and furnishings to Tibet where they were altered to create Tibetan-style robes.
  • 2007
    (Myrna Myers Gallery, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    2007–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Cleveland Museum of Art. The CMA Companion: A Guide to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2014. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 367
    "New in the Galleries.” Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine vol. 58. no. 1 (January/February 2018): Back cover. Reproduced and Mentioned: Back cover.
    Vollmer, John, Thierry Prat, and Richard Sheppard. 2003. Silks for Thrones and Altars : Chinese Costumes and Textiles : From the Liao through the Qing Dynasty. Paris: Myrna Myers. 92
    The Asian Art Newspaper. "The Splendor of Chinese Textiles: From the Silk Road to the Imperial Court." The Asian Art Newspaper: Monthly for Collectors, Dealers, Museums and Galleries 21, no. 6 (Summer 2018): 25. Reproduced: p. 25
    Spee, Clarissa von. "From the SIlk Road to the Imperial Court: Chinese Textiles in the Cleveland Museum of Art." Arts of Asia 48, no. 3(May-June 2018): 50-56. Reproduced: p. 53, fig. 4
  • The Splendor of Chinese Silk – Chinese Gallery Rotation 240a, 241c. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (February 5-August 12, 2018).
  • {{cite web|title=Tibetan Man's Robe, Chuba|url=false|author=|year=late 1600s|access-date=16 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2007.216