CIRCA: 1800’s
Elegant 19th century Chinese Yue embroidered* silk peacock banner using finely woven coloured silk threads, and wafer-thin silver encased silk threads, on a red silk panel. The super-fine embroidery and expert blending of the beautiful colours is obviously the work of a master-crafts-person / artist, as on close inspection there can be no doubt that this is an expertly woven and visually stunning piece! The two close-up ‘framed’ photos on the second row show 1) just one square inch of the silver encased couched-stitched threads, and 2) one square inch of the super-fine silk embroidery work in the peacock’s tail feathers; while the ‘framed’ photo at right on the third row shows the same exquisite embroidery in one square inch around the peacocks eye. Even the two tiny birds at the top are superbly embroidered and uniquely different. And although this piece was woven in China in the 1800’s during the Qing Dynasty, it came from Tibet where it had been used in a Buddhist monastery; probably hung behind or near a high lama, as peacocks are very symbolic in the Buddhist religion.** The back is lined with indigo-blue-dyed cotton cloth, typical of many Tibetan sourced pieces, even carpets, while the blue strip across the top is also of the same blue cotton material. It has been in the one collectors loving hands now for over fifty years, having originally been purchased circa 1970 from a Tibetan living as a refugee in Kathmandu, Nepal. It is in very good condition.
*Yue Embroidery, or Guangdong embroidery, originates from the vivid cultural landscape of Guangdong Province in the Pearl River Delta region of Southern China. It is known as one of the four great embroideries of China – the other three being Sichuan embroidery, Suzhou embroidery and Xiang embroidery – and has a history that dates back well over a millennia, having become fully developed during the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907). Yue embroidery is celebrated to this day for its intricate needlework, delicate stitching techniques and vibrant colour.
** PEACOCK SYMBOLISM. Because peacocks display their feathers by opening their tails, in Buddhism they are associated with openness and purity, and their feathers are even used in Buddhist purification rituals. With its tail of 100 eyes, the peacock is also associated with the female Bodhisattva Mahamayuri (a Sanskrit word meaning “great peahen / peacock”). As Mahamayuri she is also known as the ‘Queen of the Secret Sciences’ and the ‘Godmother of Buddha’, and is believed to have the power to protect devotees from poisoning, either physical or spiritual. Mahamayuri is also the name of one of the five protective goddesses in Buddhism.
Peacocks can also eat poisonous plants, which symbolizes that they have the ability to thrive in the face of suffering, unlike we mere humans. In Buddhism, her demeanour is in contrast to the wrathful attitudes of the male personifications of the Wisdom Kings. (A Wisdom King is a type of wrathful deity in East Asian Buddhism.) The female counterparts of Wisdom Kings are known as Wisdom Queens. Hence Mahamayuri (Vidyarajni) is a Bodhisattva and female Wisdom King in Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism.
But the symbolism doesn’t stop, or start there: besides Tibetan Buddhism, other religions also venerate peacocks and hold them in high regard and are part of their ancient lore. For instance; in Hinduism peacocks are considered highly sacred and associated with a number of important deities. Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, prosperity, and beauty, is symbolized by a peacock while Lord Krishna is often depicted wearing peacock feathers in his hair. In Christian lore, it is said that peacocks represent renewal and resurrection because they regrow their feathers every year. Tombs and thrones from early Christian and Byzantine cultures often featured peacocks as a reminder of Christ’s resurrection and the soul’s ability to live on after the body’s death. And the ancient Greeks learned about peacocks through the conquests of Alexander the Great and quickly adopted the bird into their mythology. Peacocks were said to pull the chariot of Hera, the queen of the gods and Zeus’ wife. And because of the many ‘eyes’ on their tail feathers they became a symbol of all-seeing wisdom and knowledge.
As can be seen then, the peacock is a truly symbolic, venerated and widely ‘adopted’ bird!