This gold brocade was made for the Jurchens, a pastoral tribe who lived in the steppes of northeast China and north Korea and established the Jin (‘Golden’) dynasty. They loved gold and hunting. Their inclination towards gold and hunting inspired many splendid brocades patterned with birds, aquatic plants and animals enclosed in repeated roundels or teardrop-shaped medallions. The Chinese later began to incorporate dragons and phoenixes into these medallions. They also made the best use of local technology and resources by using paper to make gold threads instead of utlising an animal substrate.
