Exploring Manchu Fashion: The Cultural Heritage of Qing Dynasty Clothing

The Manchu people, who established the Qing Dynasty in 1644, used clothing as a medium to express their unique cultural identity, language, and nomadic heritage. The Qing government standardized dress codes to differentiate societal classes during this period, which was strictly enforced until its downfall in 1911.

Traditionally, both male and female Manchu attire featured a full-length robe adorned with a jacket or vest, complemented by short coats and trousers underneath. Men wore hats year-round whereas women adorned themselves with formal headdresses on ceremonial occasions.

Let us delve deeper into the exhibit:

Brown Mang Robe, Manchu Women's Informal Full Length Robe, and Manchu Shoes

Each piece from this era falls under the purview of the Late Qing Dynasty 1840-1911. A silk brown coat embroidered with dragon motifs and eight Buddhist symbols hangs prominently in the Manchu section. The Dragon or Mang robe signifies imperial authority and a cosmic order through its design that includes water, mountns, and dragons as symbolic elements; the eight Buddhist symbols represented are a wheel, vase, umbrella, canopy, conch shell, fish, and less knot. Notably, this is not an orthodox style; hence, it was possibly utilized by actors in Peking opera, China's most widespread form of traditional theater.

Manchu Women's Pale Pink Coat Chenyi and Head Dress

This ensemble comprises a Manchu women’s informal full-length robe known as Chenyi. Characterized by golden fish and lotus motifs embroidered on patterned silk damask, this coat is adorned with black bands featuring decorative brds and cuprous ball buttons. Unlike the Changyi style robe which features no split on its left side, Chenyi includes a split. This particular attire was highly popular during the Qing dynasty.

Manchu Woman's Head Dress

The high headwear was an essential component of Manchu fashion in late Qing Dynasty, featuring crocheted bands at the crown, large black flaps, and artificial flowers.

Manchu Women's Wooden Platform Slippers

These blue embroidered shoes consist of wide bands of black metallic brocade. They feature platforms with quilted fabric soles, highlighting an important characteristic of Manchu style footwear. Typically, Manchu officials wore boots for both gers; however, upper-class Manchu women opted for silk slippers at home. Some platform shoes were equipped with a wooden base that added height to the wearer's stature, often imitating the bound feet of Han Chinese women.

Manchu Women’s Shoes

This pr of red embroidered shoes displays a myriad of colors and natural shapes in their design. This type was worn by Manchu women during late Qing Dynasty times when formal attire was preferred indoors.

Men’s Tapestry and Pnted Jifu Robe Mang Pao

This male Mang pao showcases the technique of tapestry alongside pnted detls, with a multicolored striped section indicating late Qing style. The shade of blue denotes status similar to the mang pao worn by nobility due to its distinctive feature of having splits on front, back, and both sides.

Purple Full Length Manchu Robe

This purple Manchu robe is emblematic of elegance and freshness typical of the Qing Dynasty era. It was woven with patterns symbolizing various seasons' butterflies and flowers, conveying wishes for wealth, health, happiness, fertility, love, and career advancement.

Manchu Women's Informal Full Length Robe

The final piece is a common attire worn by upper-class Manchu women in dly streetwear; it might have been matched with a high headdress and high platform slippers. The floral motifs of narcissus, begonia, chrysanthemum, winter plum blossoms, winter jasmine, symbolized prosperity, health, happiness, fertility, love, and advancement.

In this detled exploration of Manchu fashion during the Qing Dynasty era, various elements such as traditional clothing styles, headwear, footwear, symbolic motifs, and formal wear for different gers were presented to give insight into their cultural heritage.

Acknowledgments:

All images belong to Cornell University Library's extensive collection, contributing significantly to our understanding of Chinese history through visual narrative.

References:

• Cornell University Library 2024. Manchu Style in the Late Qing Dynasty. Ithaca, NY.

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