Procession of a Successful Candidate in the Civil Service Examinations

Image credit: Horniman Museum and Gardens

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Notes

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This painting is by an unknown artist from China. A painting on silk depicting a procession of a successful candidate in the civil service examinations. At the back, towards the upper right corner, is a young woman, probably his bride-to-be, dressed in a red coat with blue collar, sitting in a sedan chair carried by four men. In front is another more ornate red and green sedan chair with dragon motifs and a butterfly fixed to each corner of the roof. A man wearing a coat with a Mandarin square walks beside it. Walking in front are musicians and four paper lantern carriers, which have the words shuang xi, or double happiness, written on them. Also in the procession are drummers, a gong carrier and men carrying placards, metal lanterns and flags with symbolic images, such as an open hand and an axe head, on long poles.

Horniman Museum and Gardens

Forest Hill

Title

Procession of a Successful Candidate in the Civil Service Examinations

Date

late 19th C

Medium

pigment on silk

Measurements

H 46 x W 70.5 cm

Accession number

1996.355

Acquisition method

gift, 1996

Work type

Painting

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Horniman Museum and Gardens

100 London Road, Forest Hill, Greater London SE23 3PQ England

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