THE CATALOGUE

James C.Y. Watt and Anne E. Wardwell are the principal authors of the exhibition's catalogue, When Silk Was Gold: Central Asian and Chinese Textiles. The catalogue will be published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art in cooperation with The Cleveland Museum of Art.

The book sets the stage for a layperson's understanding of the cultures that created the works of art in the essay "The Silk Trade in China and Central Asia," by Morris Rossabi. Rossabi is Professor of Chinese and Central Asian History at Columbia University and at Queens College of the City University of New York (and formerly of Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland). Rossabi received his Ph.D. in East and Central Asian History from Columbia University in 1970. A specialist on China's relations with neighboring peoples, on the Mongols, and on the Yuan and Ming dynasties, Rossabi is a prolific author most popularly known for Khubilai Khan: His Life and Times, which was translated into a half-dozen languages and featured by major book clubs. He previously collaborated on the major exhibition Chinggis Khan Mongolia: The Legacy of Chinggis Khan.

An introductory essay by the two curators follows, describing their collections and this exhibition. Then the works of art are presented in five chapters: silks of the 8th to 11th centuries, including drawloom-woven silks and one printed silk that date between the High Tang and the Liao/Northern Song periods; kesi, or tapestries made of silk and often gold, dating from about the 11th through 14th centuries; gold-brocaded silks woven in the Jin territories, including during and after the Jin dynasty (1115-1234); luxury silks woven in the Mongol period (1207-1368); and embroideries dating from the Tang (618-907) to the early Ming dynasty (early 15th century).

The catalogue's entries for all works in the exhibition contain detailed structural analyses, including techniques and materials. A directors' foreword, an appendix on techniques, four maps, and a selected bibliography complete the book.

When Silk Was Gold will be available when the exhibition premieres in October 1997. It will be distributed by Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York. It is made possible, in part, by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

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