Manchu Woman's Unofficial Semiformal Vest

The clothing of high-ranking Manchu women was divided into different categories: official or unofficial, and formal, informal, or semiformal. This unofficial, semiformal vest would have been worn at family occasions and domestic events, rather than in a court setting. Lavishly decorated with roundels of auspicious flowers and plants—orchids, narcissuses, melons, lotuses, chrysanthemums—it was meant to be worn over a long robe.