Rank badge

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A rank badge (hangul: 흉배; hanja: 胸背; romanized: hyungbae), analogous to the Mandarin Square, was a large embroidered badge sewn onto the front and back of the business attire (Gwanbok) worn by Korean officials of the Joseon dynasty. It was embroidered with detailed animal insignia to indicate the rank of the official wearing it.

Example

Rank badge, 1850-1900 V&A Museum no. FE.272-1995

This rank badge (hyungbae in Korean) is a small yet beautifully executed panel of embroidery that would have served to indicate the status of a government official in the Choson Dynasty Korea (1392-1910). Made in the nineteenth century, it shows a pair of black and white leopards, one above the other in opposing stance, surrounded by stylised cloud patterns in pink, purple and pale green upon a blue background. It would have been worn by a military official from the first to third ranks. Leopards and tigers, respected for their strength and courage in Korea, were used for the dress of military officials while civil officials wore crane motifs. This badge shows the distinctively spotted animals among rocks, waves and clouds in a pattern which remained virtually unchanged for 300 years.

See also

Bibliography

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mandarin square.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.