Study on the Image and Craft of Ivory Hanging Screens with Tilling and Weaving Picture in the Palace Museum

The pair of dyed ivory hanging screens with sandalwood borders, which are housed in the Palace Museum, depict the scenes of tilling and weaving in the Qing Dynasty. Their images set a precedent by integrating the corresponding processes of “tilling” and “weaving” into one picture, becoming a rare category of the Tilling and Weaving Pictures in the Qing Dynasty. By integrating multiple scientific detection methods, the authors investigated the materials of the hanging screens and the composition of pigments used in the dyed ivory; based on the pigments, it is speculated that the production time of the hanging screens may be after the mid-18th century, corresponding to the middle and late Qing Dynasty; by combining archival literature and traditional restoration craft of ivory artifacts, this study explores the workmanship of hanging screens and ivory dyeing craft, summarizes the production craft of hanging screens and the connection methods of ivory components, in order to further explore the historical information and artistic value contained in the ivory artifacts of the Forbidden City.