Dragon Badge
Masterpieces of Chinese Art, The Pasadena (CA) Art Institution, Exhibition of Chinese textiles. February 5-March 23, 1952, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, November 19, 1954-January 2, 1955.
This badge depicts a Chinese dragon, a mythical creature that changed over centuries and came to symbolize imperial power. Here, it has a horned head, sharp fangs, five claws, and an agile serpentine body. The dragon’s magical powers allow it to fly and dive deep in water. The badge, finely embroidered with luxurious silk and gold foiled threads, could only be fit for an emperor or heir apparent.
Julia St. Clair Krenz (1882-1971), by February 1936-April 1941 [1];
Purchased from Krenz by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1941.
NOTES:
[1] Julia St. Clair Krenz lived in China during several periods between 1919 and 1949. She worked at the American Legation in Peiping in various capacities, including as an accountant and clerk, and supplemented her income through the trade of Chinese objects. Krenz was best known for her collection of Chinese textiles, which was exhibited piecemeal at the Yale University Gallery of Fine Arts from 1931 to 1936. This object is one of approximately 400 textiles she placed on loan to the Nelson-Atkins in July 1936, shortly after her return from China earlier that year; it remained on loan until its purchase in 1941.
