Rank Badge (buzi) (China)

Longevity

Both visually striking and culturally significant, this Chinese rank badge is dated to 1391-1527, situating it within the Ming Dynasty, which was extant from 1398-1644. Though the tradition is said to have originated even earlier, it was during this time when the practice of identifying the ranks of Chinese government and military officials with badges worn on the front and back of robes was standardized. These badges were conferred only by the emperor and earned through the rigorous study of Confucian classics. Individuals could only progress through the ranks by examination making each successive rank all the more noble.[1]

The symbolism woven into this badge tells us it would have been worn by a civilian of the first and highest rank. Traditionally there are two sets of ranks: military and civilian. Military ranks are represented by mythological and real animals symbolizing courage, while the nine civilian ranks are represented by birds, which in Chinese culture are traditionally aligned with literary enlightenment and scholarship.[2] This badge features a pair of cranes with their wings spread, floating across a metallic golden sky punctuated with multicolored, modeled clouds of various shades of green, blue, red and yellow. In both the Ming and the Qing (1644-1911) Dynasties, the first rank was signaled by the crane or xianhe, identifiable here by their red crowns. The crane came to symbolize immortality, longevity and wisdom because Chinese mythology held that they could live thousands of years. Cranes also have physical attributes associated with longevity such as white feathers, and long tails and necks. In addition to alluding to heaven, the swirling clouds that serve as a background of the badge are also symbols of longevity.[3] This auspicious imagery makes the badge an apt marker for a high-ranking scholar and civil official.

The theme of longevity recurs in Chinese culture and art, as well as in other Asian cultures, signaling a shared reverence for wisdom and pursuit of a long, fruitful life.

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[1] Linda Wigglesworth, The Badge of Rank (London, 1990): p. 3.

[2] Linda Wigglesworth, The Badge of Rank (London, 1990): p. 3.

Dr. Young Yang Chung, The Art of Oriental Embroidery: History, Aesthetic, and Techniques (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1979): p. 109-10.

[3] Valerie Garrett, Mandarin Squares: Mandarins and Their Insignia (New York: Oxford University Press, 1995): p. 41 & 47.

Rank Badge (buzi) (China); silk, gilded paper; H x W: 34 x 31.1 cm (13 3/8 x 12 1/4 in.); Gift of John Pierpont Morgan; 1902-1-433

This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibition Making Design.