A PAIR OF CHAIR STRIPS WITH DRAGONS AND LIONS China, 19th ct. 147 x 50 cm Orange-red silk velvet, the pattern woven in with flat gold threads. As usual, the strips are divided into four sections corresponding to the sections of the chair they cover: The seat is adorned with an endless Buddhist knot surrounded by swaying bands of Daoist treasure motifs like a leaf fan and others. The part hanging down at the front shows a Shizi lion standing on its hind legs accompanied by a brocade ball and clouds. The chairback is decorated in the front with a four-clawed frontal dragon and a double luck character (shuangxi) on the back. This may indicate that the hangings were made to be used at a wedding. Flower tendrils fill the surrounding frame. Chair hangings were not intended for comfort in the Qing Dynasty but their use was allowed according to rank and the hierarchy based on Confucian rules. In this pair, surprisingly, the representations are woven in mirror image, which needs much additional effort. This could also indicate the use by a wedding couple, as strict symmetry was often maintained during festivities. From an old South German private collection, assembled between 1970 and 2002 - Cf.: Almost identical chair strip in velvet, 19th ct., Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, inv. no. 33.40.92. Two chair strips with dragons and lions in velvet, 18th ct., Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, inv. no. 33.40.90. A bit faded, velvet pile somewhat flattened