Skip to Main Content

Wedding Fan

진주선 (眞珠扇)

mid-1800s
(1392–1910)
Copper alloy; satin weave silk; silk and metal thread embroidery; and paper
Diameter: 25.6 cm (10 1/16 in.)
Director's Contingent Fund 1918.558
Location: not on view
You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.

Download, Print and Share

Did You Know?

This fan was not to cool oneself, but rather to veil a bride's face during a wedding ceremony as a gesture of chastity.

Description

In the Joseon period, women between the ages of 14 and 20 were matched with a husband through an arranged marriage. Even during the marriage ceremony, a bride was supposed to veil her face with this type of embroidered fan as a gesture of chastity. The fan’s body is made of paper and silk trimmed with a gilded metal rim. On the front, four cranes—one pair in blue, the other in yellow—are stitched along with auspicious clouds. The back is adorned with dragons flying amid clouds. The metal band vertically running down the center is incised with a bat, a symbol of wealth.
Wedding Fan

Wedding Fan

mid-1800s

Korea, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910)

See Also

Visually Similar Artworks

Contact us

The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@clevelandart.org.

To request more information about this object, study images, or bibliography, contact the Ingalls Library Reference Desk.

All images and data available through Open Access can be downloaded for free. For images not available through Open Access, a detail image, or any image with a color bar, request a digital file from Image Services.