Pillowcase
ClassificationsTextiles-pillowcases
Culture
Miao
Date20th Century
Made AtBijie, Guizhou Province, China, Asia
MediumCotton and silk
Dimensions18 × 23 in. (45.7 × 58.4 cm)
Credit LineGift of Anne and Long Shung Shih
Object number2019.23.40
DescriptionThe textiles of the Miao in Southwest China are appreciated for their exuberant, decorative qualities. Girls learn how to weave and decorate textiles at a young age, as it is considered an essential skill. Traditionally the Miao did not have a written language, making textile manufacture one of the principal modes for passing down information from generation to generation. The Miao originally migrated from the region surrounding the Yangtze River and this motif is the symbolic representation of their original homeland. Originally this object may have been a men's collar for the Bijie dress, but was sewn into a pillowcase as the Miao often reuse small textile pieces.On View
Not on view
