China, Wenzhou, Zhenjiang province, 18^th-19^th century. Finely woven in bright colors on a red ground with a lively scene depicting the festival. Xiwangmu, the Queen Mother of the West, descends from the sky astride her phoenix as the immortals eagerly await her arrival, amid swirling clouds, gnarled peach trees, and craggy rockwork, all below an image of the Buddha surrounded by four cranes in flight.

Expert’s note: The addition of the Buddha, which is prominently placed at the top center of the composition, is a rare and unusual feature of this panel, as the subject matter is Daoist. It is highly likely that the work was a special commission commemorating a birthday celebration, and as such, this Buddha would have reflected a particularly pious recipient.

Provenance: French trade.
Condition: Magnificent condition with only very minor wear, little soiling, minimal creasing, and few loose threads. Must be regarded as exceedingly rare in this pristine state of preservation.

Dimensions: ca. 250 x 112 cm

The Peach Festival is a popular Daoist theme associated with the birthday celebration of Xiwangmu, who has the sole authority to grant Peaches of Eternal Life and bestow celebrants of the festival with great fortune. According to legend, the festival is held at the Jade Palace in the Kunlun Mountains in the Western paradise and only takes place every 3000 years. Here, groups of Immortals are pictured waiting in anticipation for Xiwangmu, who gracefully arrives on a phoenix. The auspicious message of this theme made the present panel suitable for presentation at important festivities.

Kesi, which means ‘cut silk’, derives from the visual illusion of cut threads that is created by distinct, unblended areas of color, as the weft threads are woven into each color and then cut. The earliest surviving examples of kesi tapestries date to the Tang dynasty (618-907), although the technique was already used earlier in wool and became widely applied only during the Song dynasty (1127-1379). The fragment of a kesi tapestry was recovered in a tomb of a man and his wife in Dulan, Qinghai province, who died in 633 and 688 respectively, and another also excavated in Dulan, was included in the exhibition “China, Dawn of a Golden Age” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2005, cat. no. 245. During the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), kesi panels enjoyed a rise in popularity and thrived under the Qing emperors.

During the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), official weaving workshops were established both in the palace and in the cities of Jiangning, Suzhou and Hangzhou, in order to cater to the court’s increasing demand for palace and temple furnishings, clothing and presentation silks for civil and military officials. Specialized centers of production soon developed around this area, such as the city of Wenzhou, Zhenjiang province, which became particularly famous for its luxurious kesi tapestries.

Literature comparison:
Compare a related kesi panel depicting the 'Peach Festival' on a red ground, in the Liaoning Provincial Museum, Shenyang, included in the Hong Kong Oriental Ceramic Society exhibition Heaven's Embroidered Cloths. One Thousand Years of Chinese Textiles, Hong Kong, 1995, no. 119. Compare a related kesi panel depicting Xiwangmu being greeted by female Immortals included in the exhibition Masterpieces of Chinese Silk Tapestry and Embroidery in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1998, no. 21.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams London, 14 May 2009, lot 195
Price: GBP 26,400 or approx. EUR 43,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An ‘eight immortals’ kesi panel, the kesi 18^th/19^th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related subject, kesi technique, and red ground. Note the smaller size (223 x 93.5 cm), which already includes the gilt paper dedication at the top.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 28 September 2021, lot 39
Price: USD 40,000 or approx. EUR 40,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A Large Silk Kesi Daoist Immortals 'Birthday' Panel, China, Late Qing Dynasty
Expert remark: Compare the closely related subject, kesi technique, and red ground. Note the significantly smaller size (179.1 x 92.4 cm).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie’s London, 11 November 2016, lot 787
Price: GBP 16,250 or approx. EUR 23,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A kesi ‘eight immortals’ hanging panel, circa 1900
Expert remark: Compare the closely related subject, kesi technique, and red ground. Note the significantly smaller size (169.5 x 79.3 cm).

清代大型緙絲《蟠桃盛宴》掛屏
中國，浙江溫州，十八至十九世紀。帳身的主體用各色緙絲精美緻出瑤池集慶百壽圖。紅地緙絲，流雲密佈，正中央有下方如來端坐。左側松石挺立，各路仙人往來其間，可以辨識的有或爲和合二仙，有福、祿、壽三星，拱手屈身，正在拜迎王母駕臨；八仙過海，亦有麻姑、毛女。河水之上是五色流雲。雲端西王母正在青女們的簇擁下乘坐青鸞而來，往左方的瑤台而去。無論是各路仙人，還是仙鶴流雲、海屋添籌等裝飾，都表現出濃濃的壽意。

專家注釋：由於是道教題材，將佛陀端坐頂部中央，是一個不尋常的特徵。這件作品很可能是是祝壽所用且特別委託製作的，因此這尊佛陀會體現了一位特別虔誠的供養人。

來源：法國古玩交易。
品相：狀況極佳，只有非常輕微的磨損和汙漬、摺痕、鬆線，實為罕見。

尺寸：約250 x 112 釐米

蟠桃宴是一個流行的道教主題，與西王母的生日慶典有關。西王母可以授予長生不老蟠桃，並賜予前來慶祝的人巨大的財富。相傳，這個節日在西方崑崙山的玉皇宮舉行，每三千年才舉行一次。這裡描繪了成群的神仙在等待西王母，她乘坐青鸞而來。瑤池集慶這個主題寓意著福壽綿綿，為祝壽慶典喜上加喜、慶上增慶。

緙絲，又稱刻絲，是中國傳統的一種絲織品，其特色是以緙織方式織造，緯線並不橫貫全幅，而僅在需要處與經線交織。尚存的最早的緙絲壁掛實例可追溯到唐朝（618-907），開始將此技法用於絲織品。南宋時期緙絲得到廣泛使用。緙絲壁掛曾在青海省都蘭墳墓中被發現。在紐約大都會博物館2005年的展覽“China，Dawn of a Golden Age” 也曾展出過另一塊出土緙絲，目錄圖 245。

在明朝（1368-1644），緙絲壁掛受歡迎程度不斷提高，並在清朝皇帝的統治下蓬勃發展。清朝初期（1644-1911年），在皇宮以及江寧、蘇州和杭州等城市都建立了官方的織布作坊，以滿足宮廷和廟宇陳設、服裝和文職和軍事官員所用絲綢的日益增長的需求。很快就出現了特殊的生產中心，例如浙江溫州，以其豪華的緙絲掛毯而聞名。

文獻比較：
比較一件相近的紅地蟠桃宴緙絲掛屏，遼寧省博物館 ，展覽於香港東方陶瓷學會， 《Heaven's Embroidered Cloths. One Thousand Years of Chinese Textiles》，香港，1995年，編號119。比較一件相近的西王母與眾仙女緙絲掛屏，展覽於臺北故宮博物院《Masterpieces of Chinese Silk Tapestry and Embroidery》，1998年，編號21。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：非常相近
拍賣：倫敦邦瀚斯，2009年5月14日，lot 195
價格：GBP 26,400（相當於今日EUR 43,000）
描述：十八至十九世紀八仙緙絲掛屏
專家評論：比較非常相近主題、緙絲和紅地。請注意尺寸較小(223 x 93.5 厘米)，頂部有一頁鍍金紙。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：非常相近
拍賣：紐約佳士得，2021年9月28日，lot 39
價格：USD 40,000（相當於今日EUR 40,000）
描述：中國晚清緙絲群仙祝壽圖
專家評論：比較非常相近主題、緙絲和紅地。請注意明顯尺寸較小(179.1 x 92.4 厘米)。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：非常相近
拍賣：倫敦佳士得，2016年11月11日，lot 787
價格：GBP 16,250（相當於今日EUR 23,000）
描述：清約1900年緙絲群仙獻壽圖
專家評論：比較非常相近主題、緙絲和紅地。請注意明顯尺寸較小(169.5 x 79.3 厘米)。