Detail of a robe for a Daoist priest
1650-1700
Embroidered silk
Museum no. T.91-1928

This is a detail from a sumptuous robe made for use in Daoist religious ceremonies is embroidered with 350 deities and immortals. Originally, many of these personages had their names written beside them, but these have now largely worn away. This is a 'robe of descent' - square in shape, sleeveless, with a round hole for the neck. It would have rested on the shoulders of the Daoist priest, and when he held up his arms, its decorative scheme would have been seen in all its glory by the onlookers.

The  350 deities depicted represent the gods of the Daoist pantheon, including the Three Purities, the Three Celestial Worthies and the Jade Emperor.