The treasures of Chinese Empresses, at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, USA

To admire these rare objet, allowed to leave the Chinese territory only exceptionally, you will have to travel to Salem, Mass. in the United States, before the 10th of February 2019. That's where the Peabody Essex Museum is dedicating an exhibition focused on the roles of the empresses belonging to the last Chinese dynasty, that of the Qing, which ruled over the Middle Kingdom from 1644 to 1912.

The Chinese empresses at the museum 

This event coincides with the 40th anniversary of the establishing of diplomatic, commercial and cultural relations between the United States and China. Thanks to works on loan from the Palace Museum in Peking, it articulates around empresses Chongqing, Xiaoxian and Cixi, featuring themes such as weddings at the court, their family role, ways of life and artistic influence.

Ornamented with motifs in gold and precious stones, this court hat was designed by the Imperial Worshop in Peking. © The Palace Museum

Decorated with a two-headed dragon, the seal of the empress was apposed on all the official documents. © The Palace Museum

200 works never seen in the Western world

This is a grand premiere for this musuem that usually displays collections oriented towards the maritime world. The 200 objects presented for the occasion comprise the largest ensemble of dragon dresses, portraits, sculptures and decorative elements having belonged to women of power stemming from the Manchu ethnic minority. An intriguing immersion in the mysteries of eternal China…

Heavy and high, these platform shoes were the prerogative of the nobility. © The Palace Museum