Shawl

Chinese

Not on view

The embroidery on this Chinese shawl is unique in its imagery and level of animation, especially in the realistic depiction of birds and their actions (eating insects, for example). Other atypical details include fruit (pineapples and grapes) and fanciful insects and plant pods. Most of the embroidery is executed in a standard satin stitch but the tails of the grey birds are done in a fine herringbone stitch that imitates the texture of feathers. The fretwork along the border is an unusual touch for shawls made for the Western market.

Shawl, silk, Chinese

This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.