Object Details
maker
unknown
Description (Brief)
Lee B. Lok (1869-1942) immigrated to San Francisco from Guangdong Province, China in 1881 and soon after moved to New York City's Chinatown where he worked in the Quong Yuen Shing & Co. store.
Lee B. Lok ordered this gown from China to wear at the 1896 arrival ceremony in New York of Li Hongzhang, emissary of the Empress Dowager of China. Soon after Lee came to America he abandoned Chinese clothes for daily use and cut his queue. However on special occasions Lee wore clothing that identified him as Chinese. This Manchu style gown splits at the back, front, and both sides to allow for easy movement on horseback – a reflection of the Manchu people’s equestrian background.
Location
Currently not on view
Credit Line
Gift of James Edgar Mead and Virginia Lee Mead
date made
ca 1896
ID Number
1992.0620.24
catalog number
1992.0620.24
accession number
1992.0620
Object Name
gown, man's
Object Type
Man
Main Dress
Gown
Physical Description
silk (overall material)
satin (overall material)
Measurements
overall: 72 cm x 131 cm; 28 3/8 in x 51 9/16 in
place made
China
worn
United States: New York, Manhattan, Chinatown
Related Publication
Mead, Virginia Lee. Lee Chinese -American Family Papers, ca. 1915-1970
Related Web Publication
https://sova.si.edu/record/nmah.ac.0555
See more items in
Home and Community Life: Costume
Family & Social Life
Cultures & Communities
Clothing & Accessories
Transcontinental Railroad
Chinese American
Data Source
National Museum of American History
referenced
Immigration
Immigrants
used
Chinese Americans
related event
Li Hongzhang visit to New York
Link to Original Record
Record ID
nmah_1119989
