Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 9

Qing Dynasty K'o-Ssu ("Cut Silk") Rank Badge with Silver Phoenix

About the Item

19th century K'o-ssu ("cut silk") rank badge depicting a silver pheasant. The Chinese tradition of wearing rank badges (buzi), also known as Mandarin squares, to demonstrate civil, military or imperial rank began in 1391 during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and continued throughout the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). These insignia were sewn onto or woven into the wearer’s garments to indicate their rank. Attached to the front and back of a ceremonial robe, rank badges were woven in pairs with identical imagery. One was divided vertically up the center to attach to the front of a robe with a center opening. A badge featuring a bird identified the wearer as a civil official. To attain such a position required years of intense study, so birds may have been selected because of their literary associations. Each rank was represented by a different species, and while there were slight variations over time, by the Qing Dynasty the order from highest to lowest was: (1) crane, (2) golden pheasant, (3) peacock, (4) wild goose, (5) silver pheasant, (6) egret, (7) mandarin duck, (8) quail and (9) paradise flycatcher. Civil officials sat on the emperor’s left at court functions, so their rank birds faced right towards him. This badge, made for civil official of the fifth rank, features a silver pheasant, which can be recognized by its five distinctive long, scalloped tail feathers. The bird, with its wings outspread, looks up at a full red sun on the upper left corner, which represents the Emperor. The bird is woven in white, with blue thread detailing. Various auspicious charms, including bats, fish, covered vases, coins, and conch shells, float throughout billowing clouds and waves surrounding the bird. While many Qing-dynasty badges were embroidered, this one is an example of the painstaking weaving technique known as k'o-ssu, valued for creating an overall effect of carved silk. This particularly difficult process is obtained by taking plain colored warp threads and using various continuous colored silk weft threads to follow a painted pattern. Shuttles of weft threads weave one small single color section of the design, which is then ended. The next small section is done in the same way and ended. In working this way, a slit is created at the end point of each color, giving an overall effect of being carved silk or engraved thread. The badge has been professionally framed on an acid-free mat with anti-reflective, UV-absorbing museum glass, a product which allows for amazing clarity and uncompromised protection. The dimensions given are for the framed item; the dimensions of the badge alone are 11.1" by 11.1".
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 0.1 in (2.54 mm)Width: 11.1 in (28.2 cm)Depth: 11.1 in (28.2 cm)
  • Materials and Techniques:
    Silk,Hand-Woven
  • Place of Origin:
  • Period:
  • Date of Manufacture:
    19th Century
  • Condition:
    Wear consistent with age and use.
  • Seller Location:
    Atlanta, GA
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: 00651stDibs: LU7220233134812
More From This SellerView All
  • Rare Qing Dynasty K'o-Ssu "Cut Silk" Military Rank Badge with Bear
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    Rare Qing Dynasty k'o-ssu ("cut silk") military rank badge with bear, late 18th or early 19th century. The Chinese tradition of wearing rank badges (buzi), also known as Mandarin squares...
    Category

    Antique Late 18th Century Chinese Textiles

    Materials

    Silk

  • Qing Dynasty Rank Badge with Silver Pheasant
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    Qing Dynasty silk embroidery rank badge with silver pheasant. This vividly-colored embroidery depicts a white pheasant on a dark blue b...
    Category

    Antique Early 19th Century Chinese Textiles

    Materials

    Silk

  • Qing Dynasty Iris Roundel
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    Qing Dynasty embroidered silk roundel depicting a profusion of irises. The flowers are embroidered in satin stitch in various shades of blue and ivory o...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century Chinese Textiles

    Materials

    Silk

  • Ming Dynasty Vase with Vibrant Turquoise Glaze
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    Ming Dynasty (16th century) pottery vase with vivid turquoise glaze, decorated with dragons. The vase is partially moulded, with circular bosses around the mouth rim and a hexagonal ...
    Category

    Antique 16th Century Chinese Ceramics

    Materials

    Pottery

  • Ming Dynasty Blue and White Jarlet with Lions
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    Ming dynasty blue and white jarlet decorated with lions, 16th century. This jarlet of deep cobalt blue on an off-white, almost bisque, ba...
    Category

    Antique 16th Century Chinese Ceramics

    Materials

    Pottery

  • Ming Dynasty Ribbed Vase
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    Ming Dynasty blue and white ribbed vase from the Wan Li period (1563-1620). The raised ridges on the body separate panels of boldly painted...
    Category

    Antique Early 17th Century Chinese Ceramics

    Materials

    Porcelain

You May Also Like
  • Framed Chinese Qing Dynasty Embroidered Fifth Rank Badge
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    A finely embroidered silk civil rank badge panel matted and framed in an elaborate giltwood frame circa mid-late 19th century. The square rank badge is know...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century Chinese Chinese Export Textiles

    Materials

    Silk, Giltwood

  • Pair Chinese Embroidered Fourth Rank Badges Qing Dynasty
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    A fine matching pair of embroidered silk civil rank badge panels (known in Chinese as Buzi) unframed. The panels feature borders of fret archaic key a...
    Category

    Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Textiles

    Materials

    Silk, Giltwood

  • Framed Chinese Qing Dynasty Embroidered Third Rank Badge
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    A finely embroidered silk civil rank badge panel framed in a back carved wood frame circa late Qing dynasty 19th century. The square rank badge is known in Chinese as Buzi which was ...
    Category

    Antique Late 19th Century Chinese Qing Textiles

    Materials

    Silk

  • Framed Chinese Qing Dynasty Embroidered Fifth Rank Badge
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    A finely embroidered silk civil rank badge panel (known in Chinese as Buzi) in giltwood circa late 19th century Qing dynasty, The square panel is centered by a silver peasant, the sy...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century Chinese Qing Textiles

    Materials

    Silk

  • Framed Chinese Qing Dynasty Embroidered Sixth Rank Badge
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    A finely embroidered silk civil rank badge panel framed in a wood frame circa late Qing dynasty 19th century. The square rank badge is known in Chinese as ...
    Category

    Antique Late 19th Century Chinese Qing Textiles

    Materials

    Silk

  • Framed Chinese Qing Dynasty Embroidered Sixth Rank Badge
    Located in Atlanta, GA
    A finely embroidered silk civil rank badge panel framed in a giltwood frame circa 19th century. The square rank badge is known in Chinese as Buzi which was displayed in the front and back of the official robe to indicate one's rank status. The design is centered by a white egret of spanning open wings, perched on a rock in above the Li-Shui wave pattern. The bird is the symbol of the sixth rank official in the court of Qing Dynasty. The panel has a split in the middle and the bird looks up at a full red sun on his slight upper right, indicating that it belonged to a frontal robe of the spouse of a male official. Diamond-shape trellis on the black silk provides the background for the elaborate design. The bird is surrounded by scrolling clouds, auspicious symbols such as longevity mushrooms and Buddhist...
    Category

    Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Chinese Export Textiles

    Materials

    Silk

Recently Viewed

View All