Embroidered Silk Textile. Asia, 19th Century. Vietnam Yunnan (china).

Piece of ritual or prestige fabric (probably a chest or table cover). Weft, warp and embroidery entirely made of twisted natural silk, of high density, the thickness and weight prohibit its wearing as clothing. The exclusive use of silk, including for the woven base, indicates a quality textile. Decorated with isolated geometric motifs, embroidered in a rustic but careful way. X-shaped cross or four-pointed star. Framed or cross-shaped diamonds. V-shaped triangles "arrow fletching". Squares subdivided into 16 units, each formed of 5 vertical bars crossed by 5 horizontal bars: Remarkable fact: one of the bars in each motif is shorter, a voluntary anomaly probably carrying a religious symbolic meaning. These combined motifs recall the "Paj Ntaub" style which inspired the Hmong (Meos, Miao) mountain people of Vietnam and Yunnan. Good condition general. Wear consistent with age. No restoration. 19th century, Yunnan or North Vietnam attributable to the Hmong people. Dimensions approximately: 250x130cm This textile was purchased around 1900 by one of the French engineers who built the Yunnan-Fu-Hanoi railway line, which supports the attribution to the Hmong culture. Its degree of symbolization, its technicality and its large size make it a rare textile, of which we have not found another example. The fact that it was purchased around 1910 does not imply that it is from this period, it is certainly earlier, because it is not a textile model made for the "tourists of the time" who were essentially looking for clothing and accessories.