| Chinese textiles dating from the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) populate the collections of museums all over the world. While so called "Dragon Robes" and court costumes are often on display and widely studied, women's wear from this period may seem dim in comparison. The object under examination in this qualifying paper is a Han-Chinese woman's pleated skirt panel dating to the late nineteenth or early twentieth centuries. The owner loaned the textile to the conservation program at the Fashion Institute of Technology to undergo treatment. Very little was known about the textile when it was received. Before beginning treatment, it was important to research the cultural context of the object, giving way to a study in fashion and symbolism during the Qing dynasty. Han women's skirts and skirt panels proliferate museums and private collections, yet there are very few publications on their structural problems and conservation practices used to treat them. The skirt panel underwent a series of treatments, including humidification, underlays and overlays, and adhesive treatment. It was the prerogative of the owner of the textile that the treatment helped to improve its aesthetics and that the textile be mounted on an archival board. The object was returned to the collector ready to be framed or pressure mounted. |
