Throughout history, people in every society have had the desire to adorn themselves with jewelry and other objects made of gold, silver, jade, and other precious materials as statements of status, rank, power, and wealth. In China, personal adornments were first utilized to indicate status and rank, and evolved over the centuries to show beauty and wealth in both life and death. Drawn from the Mengdiexuan Collection, a private collection in Hong Kong, this exhibition presented 113 treasures, spanning 2,600 years, from the Shang (ca. 1600– 1100 BCE) to the Ming (1368–1644) dynasties. The belts, garment hooks, ornaments, and earrings provided a dazzling timeline of the evolution of social meaning and artistic appreciation of Chinese ornamentation.
Adornment for Eternity: Status and Rank in Chinese Ornament
万世风华：中国古代饰物展
February 6 – July 28, 1997
Curated by Julia White and Emma Bunker
Exhibition organized by the Denver Art Museum; catalogue co-published by the Denver Art Museum in association with the Woods Publishing Company; copyright 1994 by the Denver Art Museum
• The Denver Art Museum, Denver, Colorado, October 15, 1994– September 3, 1995
• Eskenazi Limited (Oriental Art Gallery), London, England, October 10–December 16, 1995
• The Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, January 13–July 14, 1996
• Eskenazi Limited (Oriental Art Gallery), London, England, October 10–December 16, 1995
• The Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, January 13–July 14, 1996
Media Coverage
- “Arts & Leisure,” The New York Times, February 2, 1997.
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