Description

This embroidered folding screen depicts a set of bronze vessels. While the subject of bronze vessels is part of mainstream male culture, which centered on ancestral rituals, its needlework was done by royal female embroiderers. Based on a design provided by a male court painter who understood the shape of each bronze vessel and its corresponding ritualistic function,female court embroiders accurately rendered a shining set of bronze vessels in gold threads. This work provides a rare example of close collaboration between women and men in achieving high artistic sophistication.