A dark blue ground formal 'dragon' robe, Chaofu Qing dynasty, the midnight-blue summer weave silk worked in couched gold threads with a five-clawed front-facing dragon on the chest, back and shoulders, each encircling a flaming pearl among clouds, bats, ribboned precious objects and scattered peonies and lotus, in multi-coloured counted stitch, all above rocks and waves, and a waist band with two confronted dragons at the front and back, the pleated skirt with twelve dragon roundels and a broad frieze of two pairs of confronted dragons chasing flaming pearls among clouds, bats and precious objects above foaming waves, the interior flap with an additional dragon and flaming pearl and another dragon roundel, 133 cm long, 198 cm wide. Provenance: Judith Rutherford Antique Chinese Textiles, Sydney, 23 August 2013. Private Collection, Sydney. Other Notes: The chaofu or attire of state is the most important of the ceremonial costumes of the Qing court. The two part construction consisted of a short side-fastening jacket attached to a pleated skirt derived from Ming styles of court dress, and adapted by the Manchu to include features of their equestrian heritage, such as the overlapping right front, narrow sleeves and horse-hoof cuffs, to protect the hands in bad weather., Compare with a robe exhibited, Draped in Dragons, Chinese Court Costume, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 3 December 2003 – 2 May 2004, pp. 7-8, Fig. 3, A similar robe sold Christie's, South Kensington, 13 May 2011, lot 1012