Chinese Textiles Designs Seen in Treasured Imported Fabrics - Treasure motifs

Meibutsugire (celebrated fabrics) were a type of dyed and woven fabric brought to Japan from places like China, mainly from the Kamakura period to the early Edo period. They include fabrics such as kinran (gold brocade), donsu (damask), nishiki (Japanese brocade) and kando (striped textile), produced during the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. They were owned by daimyo or by temples and shrines and were used for a variety of purposes. For example, they were sometimes used as mountings for calligraphic works and paintings, or as bags for tea ceremony utensils such as tea caddies, bowls etc.

The meibutsugire are being displayed in a series of four exhibitions, each exhibition featuring a different kind of design. In this, the third of the series, we will be shining the spotlight on treasure motifs. These motifs are rarely used just by themselves but can more often be seen combined with several other patterns. In this exhibition, there is only one example featuring treasure motifs by themselves (TI-190-7). Here the motifs have been scattered over an irikobishitasuki design (concentric diamonds in crossed diagonal lines) woven onto gold ground.

There are two examples of a pattern featuring treasure motifs distributed over a series of rising clouds - the kinran featuring clouds and treasure motifs on suo (purple-red dye) ground (TI-190-17), and the kinran featuring clouds and treasure motifs on dark blue ground (TI-315). Please notice, however, that they date from different times and show how the rising clouds were stylized over time. Also, although the donsu featuring blue waves and treasure motifs on light blue ground (TI-190-35) and the donsu featuring flower, plant and treasure motifs over a manjiirimiedasuki design (manji (swastika) in crossed triple-diagonal lines) on light blue ground (TI-338) both have a similar brocaded pattern, the underlying woven design differs, with one featuring stylized waves while the other features manji in crossed triple-diagonal lines, giving them both their own particular feel. Whilst viewing these meibutsugire, please be aware of the different production dates or changes in the underlying woven design.