Qing Wall Decorations
QING STYLE
The last imperial dynasty from 1644 to 1912 was a time of change in China, beginning with the invasion by Manchurian forces that ended the Ming dynasty and established the Shunzhi Emperor. The expansion of exportation and trade that had bolstered the arts during the Ming era continued, as Qing dynasty furniture involved the same attention to craftsmanship with expert construction techniques in hardwood pieces that were assembled with mortise and tenon joints rather than nails or glue. Together, these eras comprise a golden age of Chinese furniture design.
Ming-style furniture is simple and elegant with clean lines. Chairs of the period and other Ming furniture made an impression on Scandinavian modernist Hans Wegner and his streamlined seating, for example. Whereas Qing-style furniture is elaborate, with an increasing influence from the West leading to lavish carving inspired by the European Baroque and Rococo styles. And while many of the forms that define examples of the latter are common within classical Chinese furniture, such as curving and folding chairs as well as large screens, Qing designs are laden with ornamentation. Frequently, the carved motifs and inlaid designs in mother-of-pearl were auspicious, such as peonies for wealth or dragons for luck. Bats were symbols of happiness in the design of Qing furniture, with one of the characters in the word for bat, bianfu, being a homophone for fu, or “fortune.”
While several types of wood were used in the construction of Qing beds, tables, storage pieces and seating, today’s collectors know that the most prized were the rare rosewoods zitan and huanghuali. They were both sourced from Hainan, China’s largest island, and are marked by a rich luster that occurs naturally, without the application of lacquer or other decorative materials. Many of the most popular woods were imported from southeast Asia, adding to their value. Red sandalwood was also sought after for its durability and connection with Chinese medicine, with some chairs being made for health benefits.
Find a collection of antique Qing tea tables, stools, benches, decorative objects and more furniture on 1stDibs.
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Style: Qing
Framed Chinese Erotic Album Leaf, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Despite its explicit content, this intimate scene conveys a sense of tenderness and romantic love characteristic of Chinese erotic art. Known as “sp...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Paper
Framed Chinese Erotic Miniature Painting, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Despite its explicit content, this intimate scene conveys a sense of tenderness and romantic love characteristic of Chinese erotic art. Known as “sp...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Paper
19th Century Pair of Ancestor Portraits of the King & Queen
Located in North Palm Beach, FL
Deeply rooted in the belief that ancestors continue to guide and protect their descendants, many Chinese families pay homage to their departed loved ones through private rituals, see...
Category
Early 19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Paper
Antique Chinese Water Color Painting of a Man C Qing Dynasty, 19th Century
Located in Amsterdam, Noord Holland
Sharing with you this lovely painting.
Additional information:
Material: Porcelain & Pottery
Region of Origin: China
Period: 19th century
Emperor: Guangxu (1875-1908)
China Dynasty ...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Porcelain
Chinese New Year Painting, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
In celebration of the lunar New Year festival, it was traditional all over China to hang special decorations. In a city called Wuqiang, local artists made lacquer scroll paintings laden with symbolism. This framed and finely rendered early 20th century folk painting from Wuqiang features an imperial court official and his family dressed in their best silks. The young boy is dressed in a wonderfully patterned yellow robe to offer Shou Xing...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Paper
Monumental Chinese Ancestral Portrait, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Reflecting the role that ancestor worship played in Chinese culture, this Qing-dynasty painting depicts several generations of family, dressed in intricately-detailed and brilliantly...
Category
Late 19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Linen
Framed Chinese Embroidered and Appliqued Silk Collar Qing Dynasty
Located in Atlanta, GA
A silk collar from China dated to late Qing Dynasty circa 19th century. Known as Yunjian (Cloud Shoulder or Cloud Collar), this multi-lobed textile piece was a detachable collar worn around the shoulders as part of the traditional Chinese garment accessory. With its origin dated back to the Han Dynasty and being used until the end of Qing Dynasty, the form evolves with time, but much of the ornamentation and fundamental symbolism remains the same.
This striking example features a two-tiered design with eight lobes on each circle, all of which are variations of the shape of auspicious "ruyi", which represents the head of Lingzhi mushroom, a symbol of longevity. The inner lobes were made with appliqued patchwork of colorful silk. The outer lobes feature elaborate embroidery of assortment of colorful flowers, scrolling ribbons and butterfly, using mostly long and short satin stitches. The borders and outlines of the designs were lineated with metallic threads buddled in chain stitches. Small black pearls were used to link the piece together and most of them still remain.
In Qing Dynasty, the silk collar with high quality was worn by noble or aristocratic women. The red color and the lotus boy symbol indicate that it was most likely part of the fashion accouterment worn during wedding ceremony.
The collar is beautifully float mounted within a double conforming mat in a giltwood frame and wood backing. A stunningly presented period piece with story to tell.
Reference: For a collection of Chinese embroidered collars...
Category
Early 19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Silk
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
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Silk, Giltwood
Antique Wood Carving Good Fortune Set of 4
Located in Somis, CA
A wonderful set of four 19th century wood carvings each featuring two scholars in a garden pavilion. A combination of relief carving and pierced carving techniques are used in these ...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Wood
$245 Sale Price / set
30% Off
Early 19th Century Chinese Botanical Butterfly Watercolor on Pith Paper
Located in CA, CA
A 19th century Qing dynasty Chinese watercolor featuring a botanical scene. A broken branch suspended mid page features a striking butterfly atop a vivid reddish orange camellia flow...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Paper
Antique Chinese Rice Pit Paintings of Figures, Absolute Top Quality, 19th C.
Located in Amsterdam, Noord Holland
Antique 19th c Chinese Rice Pit paintings of Figures. Absolute top quality. Canton.
Additional information:
Material: Porcelain & Pottery
Region of Origin: China
Decoration Type / C...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Porcelain
Antique Chinese Water Color Painting of a Man C Qing Dynasty
Located in Amsterdam, Noord Holland
Sharing with you this lovely painting.
Additional information:
Material: Porcelain & Pottery
Region of Origin: China
Period: 19th century
China Dynasty Period: Qing (1661 – 1912)
Em...
Category
19th Century Asian Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Porcelain
$1,190 Sale Price
20% Off
Set of Ten Qing Style Porcelain Plates after Lang Shining
Located in Rio Vista, CA
Magnificent set of ten hand painted enameled porcelain plates made in the Qianlong period style after Lang Shining (July 1688-July 1766 Italian). Born in Milano, Italy Giuseppe Castiglione...
Category
20th Century Chinese Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Brass
$10,500 Sale Price / set
30% Off
Mid-19th Century Chinese Calligraphy Sign Board
Located in Kastrup, DK
A Chinese Qing Dynasty period red lacquered signboard with calligraphy.
The wood carved signboard showcases large carved Chinese characters with remnants of gold leaf, flanked wit...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Metal
Framed Chinese Erotic Album Leaf, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Despite its explicit content, this intimate scene conveys a sense of tenderness and romantic love characteristic of Chinese erotic art. Known as “sp...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Paper
Pair of Red Lacquer Chinese Couplet Signs, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
This pair of decorative red lacquer signs dates to the late 19th century and is carved in relief with a poetic couplet. Carved to resemble ink calligraphy, the couplet reads: "Do good deeds without questioning your happiness, pursue knowledge without forgetting your principles." The long, vertical signs...
Category
20th Century Chinese Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Wood, Elm, Lacquer
Chinese Reverse Glass Painting of Woman, Early 20th Century
Located in Jimbaran, Bali
This Chinese portrait depicts a young woman and was painted using a reverse glass painting technique. Painting in reverse on the opposite side of a piece of glass meant the painter h...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Glass, Wood, Paint
Framed Chinese Erotic Album Leaf, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Despite its explicit content, this intimate scene conveys a sense of tenderness and romantic love characteristic of Chinese erotic art. Known as “sp...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Paper
Antique Chinese Water Color Painting of Furniture Seller Qing Dynasty, 19th C.
Located in Amsterdam, Noord Holland
Sharing this lovely painting. It has handwriting in German on it. Translating the Chinese. We have a series of these. See second picture for similar paintings.
Additional informatio...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Porcelain
Antique Chinese Water Color Painting of a Man C Qing Dynasty, 19th C
Located in Amsterdam, Noord Holland
Sharing with you this lovely painting.
Additional information:
Material: Porcelain & Pottery
Region of Origin: China
Period: 19th century
Emperor: Guangxu (1875-1908)
China Dynasty ...
Category
19th Century Asian Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Paper
$1,190 Sale Price
20% Off
Antique Chinese Water Color Painting of Tailor Shop Qing Dynasty, 19th Century
Located in Amsterdam, Noord Holland
Sharing this lovely painting. It has handwriting in German on it. Translating the Chinese. We have a series of these. See second picture for similar paintings.
Additional informatio...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Porcelain
"Treasures of the Scholars' Studio" Chinese Painting, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
With careful brushwork, this 19th century painting honors the four treasures of the scholar's studio - paper, calligraphy brush, ink, and inkstone. Essenti...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Fabric
Pair of Framed Chinese Ancestor Portraits, circa 1880s
Located in Chicago, IL
Believing that the departed continue to hold influence over the lives of the living, many Chinese households honor their ancestors in private family rituals, invoking their spirits for long life, health, and prosperity. Commemorative portraits, which came into vogue in the late Ming and Qing dynasties, were commissioned specifically for ancestor worship and were believed to house the spirits of the deceased. When properly cared for, one's ancestors were believed to be a powerful source of honor, protection, and good luck.
This pair of ancestor portraits was hand-painted in the late-19th century and beautifully depicts a Qing-dynasty couple. While some ancestral portraits offer a more stylized representation of one's ancestors, this particular pair is painted with incredible realism and life-like expressions. Rather than depict the pair in a regal hall wearing elaborate finery, the couple is shown in a quiet home environment, seated at either end of a square tea table. Their surroundings are minimal, practically undecorated, and they wear simple, matching blue silk robes. Two young children stand beside them, each trying to capture the attention of their grandparent. We love the painting's close attention to detail and the glimpse it offers of Qing-dynasty interiors - from the carved apron of the marble-top table to the red silk lotus slippers...
Category
Late 19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Paper
Chinese Monumental Mill Wheel, circa 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Hewn from pine and held together with iron hardware, this provincial wooden wheel is a remarkable example of turn-of-the-century craftsmanship. Its monumental scale suggests it was u...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Iron
Chinese Silk Brocade Chair Panel with Pagoda & Crane, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
This framed silk brocade tapestry is one half of a magnificent Qing-dynasty chair panel, or chair strip. Because traditional Chinese seating was not upho...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Silk
Late 19th Century Chinese Silk & Metal Embroidery ( 1' 9'' x 12' 9''-53 x 387 )
Located in New York, NY
Late 19th Century Chinese Silk & Metal Embroidery
1' 9'' x 12' 9''-53 x 387
Category
1890s Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Wool
Chinese Sign of Honor, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
A 19th century northern Chinese sign of honor presented to an esteemed scholar on his 80th birthday. The large characters in the center read (from right...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Elm
"Scholar's Treasures" Chinese Painting, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
A scroll and a small lantern depicted in this 19th century painting suggest the romantic notion of a Chinese scholar painting in the evening hours. Re...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Fabric
Chinese Eternal Youth Sign of Honor, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
This monumental lacquered elmwood sign of honor was carved in northern China during the mid-19th century. The large central characters read as "Wu Zheng Ever Green", and loosely tran...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Elm
Small Blush Silk Tassel with Star Knot Charm
Located in Chicago, IL
Chinese knotted tassels are used to add elegance to everyday items like hairpins or lanterns but they often hold sentimental value, and are passed down through families for generatio...
Category
20th Century Chinese Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Jade
Antique Chinese Rice Pit painting of a Boat Top Quality Canton, 19th Century
Located in Amsterdam, Noord Holland
Antique Chinese Rice Pit painting of a Boat Top Quality Canton, 19th Century.
Fabulous painting.
Additional information:
Material: Porcelain & Pottery
Type:...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Porcelain
$558 Sale Price
20% Off
Set of Ten Erotic Chinese Bone Etchings, circa 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Despite their explicit content, these intimate scenes convey a sense of tenderness and romantic love characteristic of Chinese erotic art. Belonging to a genre known as “spring palace paintings...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Bone
Chinese Sign of Honor, circa 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Signs of honor were presented as a gesture of gratitude to individuals who had bettered their community or in acknowledge of a respected person’s birthday. The sign would have been h...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Elm
Pair of Framed Famille Jaune Porcelain Plaque Qing Dynasty
Located in Atlanta, GA
A matching pair of porcelain plaque from late Qing dynasty nicely framed in giltwood carved as bamboo. The Famille Jaune plaques were likely ...
Category
Late 19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Porcelain, Wood
Chinese Folk Drawing of Mythical Qilin, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Beautifully detailed and masterfully painted, this painting dating from the turn of the 20th century centers its expressive composition upon a rondel of Chinese symbols. Representing...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Muslin, Elm
$1,176 Sale Price
30% Off
DREAM STONE 1910 Xi-Tuanxiong China Shih-Hua Art Landscape Framed Cut Marble
Located in Miami, FL
Framed Shih-Hua dream stone landscape.
This is a gorgeous framed and matted marble stone slice known as a dream stone Shih-Hua boasting swirling hues of butterscotch, charcoal, ligh...
Category
1910s Chinese Vintage Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Marble
Exhibited Framed Chinese Qing Dynasty Embroidered Fifth Rank Badge
Located in Atlanta, GA
A fine embroidered silk civil rank badge panel (known in Chinese as Buzi) in giltwood frame originally from the Annette Martin Collection and exhibite...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Silk, Giltwood
Chinese Relief Carved Architectural Panel with Fruit and Flora, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
It’s difficult to pinpoint what makes this handcrafted panel so impressive: the artful relief carvings of seasonal fruit and lush, foliage-filled vases ...
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Spruce
'Love and Lotus Boys' Early 20th Century Chinese Folk Painting
Located in Chicago, IL
Drawn with a fine line and fresh, sketched quality, this folk hanging unites two scenes of lucky hoho lotus boys circumscribed in frames punctuated with fruits such as pomegranate, symbolic of prosperity and good fortune. On top, the two explore the natural wonders of the world...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Wall Decorations
Materials
Wood, Linen
Qing wall decorations for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a broad range of unique Qing wall decorations for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage wall decorations created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include wall decorations, asian art and furniture, building and garden elements and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with wood, fabric and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Qing wall decorations made in a specific country, there are Asia, China, and East Asia pieces for sale on 1stDibs. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for wall decorations differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $48 and tops out at $22,800 while the average work can sell for $2,640.