Chair Strip with Antiquities

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Unlike upholstered furniture, chairs in China were covered only temporarily with textiles such as this chair strip, designed and embroidered specifically to be used as a chair covering. The antiquities in the design are rebuses for good wishes. For example, the halberd and the angled stone chime together form the rebus for "celebratory occasion." This strip is embroidered mainly with gold threads that have been couched-that is, laid on the surface of the satin and stitched into place.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art