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Cultural Context

theatre

Iconographic Meaning

The Chinese character represents long life.

History Of Use

Headdresses, such as this example, were designed soft and foldable for travel and made of flexible materials such as silk, cotton, hemp, paper, and bamboo.

Description

A folded diamond-shaped opera hat for a guard character that has peony, and longevity motifs. The peony motifs are blue, and white around the lower portion. The upper portion is black. The entire hat has an overall yellow background. There is a beige pom-pom at the top. There are ties. Has a cotton lining.

Specific Techniques

All visible stitching was done by machine. Layer of heavy paper(?) pasted between two layers of fabric. Outer layer was embroidered. Ball attached to top was stuffed with dense fibre.

Narrative

A large group of Cantonese opera costumes, musical instruments, props, trunks, and stage fittings was left with the Jin Wah Sing Musical Association, apparently by some of the many itinerant troupes visiting Vancouver to perform in the Chinatown theatres in the pre-World War II period. There is no certain knowledge of why these materials were not taken back to China by them. They were used by the Jin Wah Sing Musical Association in their performances until they became too dated. The association continued to preserve them carefully, storing them in their headquarters and in the basement of the Chinese Freemasons building until several groups of materials were sold and donated to the Museum of Anthropology.