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      Fig. 26 Emperor’s winter hat with a red silk knob, worn on semiformal occasions with the dragon robe. Red silk fringing or dyed red horse or yak hair was used instead of the floss silk used on the court hat.

      When the robes were completed, they were sent to the capital (Fig. 21). A delivery chop accompanied any consignment, such as the one shown here for dragon robes made in Nanjing and dispatched to Beijing in the late nineteenth century (Fig. 22). This chop was issued to a subordinate by the chief superintendent of the Imperial Silk Manufactory in Nanjing, who was concurrently a senior customs commissioner in Jiangxi province to the south. The woodblock chop gave authorization for the transportation of sixty-one chests of dragon robes and other items from the department to the Office of the Imperial Household at Beijing, and their smooth passage through the several customs inspection posts en route.

      On semiformal occasions in winter, the emperor wore a winter hat (ji guan) topped with a red silk knob, with his dragon robe. Red silk fringing or dyed red horse or yak hair was used instead of the floss silk on his court hat (Fig. 26).

Imperial Surcoats and Rank Badges

      The circular embroidered roundel reserved for the imperial family was extended to the gun fu or imperial surcoat, which became official court dress after 1759 and was worn over court or dragon robes. It was a plain satin calf-length, center-fastening coat made in a color denoting rank – as with the other robes – and was mandatory wear for all who appeared at court (Fig. 27). The plain background was specially designed to show off the badges of rank displayed on it. Four circular roundels – placed at the chest, back and shoulders – were the prerogative of members of the imperial family as an indication of their status (Figs. 28–30).

      These roundels on surcoats were filled with five-clawed dragons depicted facing the front for higher ranks or in profile for lower ranks. The Qianlong Emperor, who loved pomp and pageantry, added the first two of the Twelve Symbols of Imperial Authority, the sun and moon, to the shoulder roundels on his gun fu, while the roundels at the chest and back contained the shou symbol for longevity. Beginning in the middle of the nineteenth century, the constellation of three stars was added to the front roundel and the mountain to the back one (Figs. 31, 32).

      Fig. 27 The Guangxu Emperor (r. 1875–1908, third from left in front) and members of the imperial family wearing surcoats with dragon roundels, the lower-ranking members wearing square insignia badges, ca. 1900.

      Fig. 28 Imperial surcoat with four roundels with front-facing five-clawed dragons embroidered in gold thread, with three of the Twelve Symbols: the moon on the right shoulder, the sun on the left shoulder, and the shou symbols on the front and back roundels, early 19th c.

      Fig. 29 Prince Zaixun, brother of the Guangxu Emperor, in a surcoat with four roundels containing dragons in profile, ca. 1908.

      Fig. 30 Prince Su wearing an imperial surcoat embellished with four roundels, 1905.

      Fig. 31 Roundel in kesi from an emperor’s surcoat, featuring the sun, a cockerel, and front-facing five-clawed dragons surrounded by eight bats for happiness, the wan emblem, and peaches for longevity, early 19th c.

      Fig. 32 Roundel embroidered on a surcoat, bearing a five-clawed dragon in profile surrounded by bats and the Eight Buddhist emblems.

      Imperial dukes and noblemen wore square insignia badges depicting the long or mang on the chest and back of the surcoat (Fig. 33). Later, towards the end of the nineteenth century, squares with hoofed dragons appeared, possibly for low-ranking noblemen not entitled to wear the clawed dragons (Fig. 34).

Informal Robes

      Official informal clothing was worn for events not connected with major ceremonies or government matters. Ordinary dress, chang fu, consisted of a nei tao or plain long gown of silk, usually reddish brown, gray or blue, cut in the same style as the dragon robe. Originally a Manchu garment designed for use on horseback, the nei tao had long sleeves and narrow horse-hoof cuffs to protect the hands, and center splits at the front, back and sides for ease of movement when mounting or dismounting horses. On some there was a section at the lower right side above the hem, which could be detached when riding. On more formal occasions, the cuffs would be worn down to cover the hands as it was considered impolite to expose them, but for informal occasions the cuffs could be turned back and the sleeves pushed up (Fig. 35).

      During the second half of the nineteenth century, it became fashionable to wear a small, plain, stiffened collar called a ling tou, which fitted over the neck of the surcoat or jacket when worn with the dragon robe or informal robe. The collar was made of dark or light blue silk, velvet, or fur, according to the season, mounted onto a narrow shaped neckband (Figs. 36, 37). When the ling tou was made of silk or velvet, it had an extended piece, which buttoned at the front and hung down at the back and was worn inside the robe.

      In 1727, the Yongzheng Emperor (r. 1723–35) issued an edict introducing a secondary kind of hat insignia to that of the hat finials,

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