Pao Tao Pictorial Rug
ca. 1900, 170 x 175 cm, North East China, Inner Mongolia
This dark blue, almost square pictorial rug from a Pao Tao workshop was a commission for the Lamaist Yonghe Gong monastery in Beijing, founded in 1744 for the Tibetan Gelung monastic order at the behest of the Qianlong Emperor, the fourth ruler of the Qing Dynasty, in order to strengthen the political and cultural ties between Tibet and China. The portrayal of two monks wearing yellow hats, the Buddhist iconography and the two Tibetan inscriptions at the upper end of the field are evidence of this purpose.
Condition
Both ends slightly reduced, some corroded brown sections. Very good overall condition with pile at its original height. Original selvedges.
ca. 1900, 170 x 175 cm, North East China, Inner Mongolia
This dark blue, almost square pictorial rug from a Pao Tao workshop was a commission for the Lamaist Yonghe Gong monastery in Beijing, founded in 1744 for the Tibetan Gelung monastic order at the behest of the Qianlong Emperor, the fourth ruler of the Qing Dynasty, in order to strengthen the political and cultural ties between Tibet and China. The portrayal of two monks wearing yellow hats, the Buddhist iconography and the two Tibetan inscriptions at the upper end of the field are evidence of this purpose.
Condition
Both ends slightly reduced, some corroded brown sections. Very good overall condition with pile at its original height. Original selvedges.
