The workshop explores Confucian thought and imperial court dress | Popgen Tech

An academic symposium on traditional Chinese clothing held online by Tsinghua University and the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology on December 17 provided new insights into the relationship between clothing and etiquette in classical Chinese civilization.

Peng Lin, director of the National Economic Research Center at Tsinghua University, gave a speech in which he argued that there is no country in the world where clothing is as closely linked to history, politics and culture as China.

“This conference is the result of our cooperation with the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, and we sincerely hope that there will be at least one such conference every year in the future,” says Peng.

Feng Shi, a researcher at the Institute of Archeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, in his speech at the symposium noted that the invention of textiles was not only for covering the body, but also for cultural communication, which plays an important role in the construction of the traditional Chinese knowledge system and even cosmology.

“Textiles are not only about making clothes, but also about creating culture, civilization and a unique Chinese cosmology,” says Feng.

Zhao Lianshan, a specially appointed professor at the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology and a research fellow at the Institute of Ancient History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, in his report systematically analyzed the costume system of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and summarized the content, major changes, as well as etiquette and political the causes and motivations of the Mengfu during the reigns of the Hongwu (1368-98), Yongle (1403-24), and Jiajing (1522-66) emperors. The mianfu was the highest form of court clothing in ancient China, worn by royalty during ceremonial occasions such as coronations.