An embroidered silk Manchu Noblewomans hat “Jiguan"

Qing dynasty, 19th century

Embroidered silk

Length: 29cm

Provenance: UK collection

The hat is of a domed shape. The upturned brim is embroidered with a polychrome lotus scroll on a black ground, with orange and red silk interior. The headgear is surmounted by a white metal hat finial, two streamers to the rear, each decorated with gold thread floral and geometric designs.  The silk embroidered pouch with tassels is the perfect finishing touch. 

Festive hats, such as the present example, were known as jiguan and completed the semi-formal outfit worn by Manchu noblewomen and noblemen, which comprised of a side-fastening silk robe decorated with five-clawed dragons, footwear, belts, purses and a surcoat.

The soldiers of the Manchus conquered China in the 1640s and their Qing dynasty ruled China for 270 years till 1912. The Qing dynasty was the last of China’s royal dynasties. The founders of the Qing dynasty came originally from Manchuria, a northern region sandwiched between China, Mongolia and Siberia (Russia). Unlike the majority of the Chinese, who were of the Han ethnic group, the Manchurians were from a different tribal-ethnic group called the Jurchens. In the early 1600s, Jurchen leaders established a military stronghold in Manchuria and defied the weakening authority of China’s Ming emperors.