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Permanent Exhibition

The Fabric of Life: Asian Textiles from the National Palace Museum Collection

Exhibition overview
Textiles are woven into the fabric of our lives, in clothing, everyday items, and home decor. This exhibition showcases select Asian textile artifacts from the Museum collection, organized around three themes: “Wrapping and Containing,” “Adorning and Identifying,” and “Protecting and Blessing.” These themes explore the textiles’ practical functions, social significance, and symbolic meanings, highlighting their diverse roles across time and space.
This exhibition also features a learning zone that introduces basic fiber materials and crafting techniques through actual examples, enlarged illustrations, and tactile exhibits. In consideration of visually impaired audiences, a booklet with both regular text and Braille is provided. Additionally, the “Wedding Attire” section, aligned with the annual theme of the NPM Asian Art Festival, showcases wedding garments from Malaysia to reveal ceremonial traditions as well as people’s wishes for a better life.

* Special thanks to the National Taiwan Museum for generously loaning Taiwanese indigenous artifacts, which has greatly enriched the content of this exhibition.

I. Wrapping and Containing
Textiles are crafted from different fibers through various techniques and fulfill essential functions in daily life. They wrap our bodies, providing coverage and protection. They cover and beautify spaces to create comfortable and aesthetically pleasing environments, thereby setting a specific atmosphere. Moreover, they serve as protective containers for objects, preventing wear while enabling portability.

II. Adorning and Identifying
Textiles serve as crucial markers of social distinction and aesthetic expression. Through the materials, craftsmanship, colors, and patterns of textiles and garments, people enhance their appearance and showcase aesthetic tastes, while revealing their social status and group identity. In particular, those who command power and wealth use magnificent and rare clothing to signify their prestige and authority.

III. Protecting and Blessing
Textiles hold spiritual significance and function across many cultures. Certain textiles are believed to possess special powers to ward off misfortune or illness and protect people through important life stages: birth, coming of age, marriage, childbearing, and death. In addition, the decorative patterns on textiles often carry auspicious meanings and are viewed as bearers of happiness and good fortune.

Wedding Attire: Malaysia
Marriage is an important milestone in life. Traditional Malay weddings blend Islamic faith and local customs, with key ceremonies like “inquiry (merisik),” “proposal (meminang),” “engagement (bertunang),” “marriage contract (Akad Nikah),” and “sitting together (bersanding).” During the wedding banquet, the bride typically wears the elegant baju kurung, consisting of a top and long skirt, complemented by a delicate head-covering and gold jewelry. The groom wears the traditional baju Melayu, featuring a tunic and trousers, with a songket cloth wrapped around his waist and either a tengkolok headdress or songkok cap. The couple sit side by side on a ceremonial dais, exuding the dignity of a king and queen, receiving sincere blessings from the guests.

Digital Encounters with Asian Textiles
Textiles and costumes have long been a manifestation of people’s pursuit of better life and fine taste. Since ancient times, the dyeing and weaving techniques have been greatly influenced by geographical environment, economy, trade and exchange, local customs, etc., thus leading to a rich diversity of textiles. Combining artifacts from the National Palace Museum collection with advanced digital technology, this space invites you to become an artisan at the Textile Workshop, where you can create beautiful classic fabrics. You can also stand in front of the Asian Dressing Mirror to match with the NPM collections and virtually transform your clothes. Be ready to explore the unique charm of Asian textiles!

Exhibition Information

Event Date Permanent Exhibition
Location 3F S304

Traffic Info

Cambodia / 20th century

Ikat ceremonial hanging (pidan) with pavilion, stupa, figure and animal motifs

This five-meter weft ikat silk hanging with mounting rings is an offering for Buddhist temples. Its theme is inspired by Cambodia's Buddhist cosmology of the Three Worlds (Trey Phum), which divides the cosmos into heavens, the human realm, and hells, thereby encouraging good deeds and merit. According to scholarly research, the image depicts the Tavatimsa Heaven, presided over by Indra, the king of gods, with magnificent palaces, temples, and stupas, surrounded by figures, deer, mythical birds, trees, parasols, banners, and other auspicious symbols.

Afghanistan / 19th century

Embroidered dress with floral and geometric motifs

The traditional Afghan woman's long dress is crafted from a bodice, sleeves, and a skirt. It is often made with brightly colored silk or cotton fabric, adorned with exquisite hand-embroidered patterns, including floral, botanical, and geometric motifs. These vibrant, richly decorated dresses are commonly worn at weddings and festive occasions, symbolizing joy and celebration. Typically paired with loose-fitting trousers and a covering for the head and shoulders, the ensemble not only reflects the region's cultural traditions but also adheres to Islamic guidelines for modest clothing.

Bengal region / 20th century

Embroidered quilt (kantha) wrapper or cover with animal and floral design

“Kantha” is a traditional craft unique to the Bengal region, where women use running stitch to repurpose old cotton fabrics such as dhotis and saris into household items like bedding, wall hangings, and covers. The stitching process creates numerous white lines and a rippling effect on the surface, while colorful embroidered patterns depict a variety of figures, animals, flowers, plants, and vehicles in lively detail. Kantha pieces reflect women's resourcefulness and creativity.

India / 20th century

Dowry bag with floral and geometric embroidery

In the neighboring regions of Gujarat in India and Sindh in Pakistan, nomadic communities are renowned for their exquisite embroidery. Women artisans skillfully use colored silk threads to create floral, animal, and geometric patterns and embellish their work with mirrors, sequins, and beads, yielding vibrant and sparkling effects. This envelope-style bag serves as both a practical accessory and an essential item in a bride's dowry.

Java, Indonesia / 19th century

Patchwork ceremonial coat (kyahi antakusuma) with geometric pattern

High-quality textiles obtained through trade were highly revered across the Indonesian archipelago, and the ruling class would wear or display them to signify their elevated social standing. This patchwork coat (kyahi antakusuma) from Java, constructed from over a thousand fabric pieces, incorporates then-precious Indian kalamkari and European felts. These garments were usually worn by royalty, nobles, or high priests at important festivals and ceremonies, symbolizing authority, spirituality, and protection.

Sumatra, Indonesia / 19th century

Brocaded shoulder cloth with floral and geometric pattern

The “songket” technique involves the addition of supplementary metal thread to silk weavings. Popular in Indonesia, Malaysia, and other Southeast Asian regions, songket was a symbol of wealth and authority, favored by royal courts as the premier luxury textile. This songket shoulder cloth from Palembang, Sumatra, features a central pattern of diamonds and flowers, with triangular bamboo shoots (pucuk rebung) at both ends, symbolizing vitality and growth.

Turkmenistan / 19th – 20th century

Child's tunic with embroidery

In Turkmen nomadic tradition, mothers would create vibrantly colored garments for children to wear until the age of four or five as a protective practice. Typically the product of collective female artisanship, these garments feature intricate embroidery enhanced with bells, shells, coins, amulets, and tassels. The decorative elements serve to divert the “evil eye,” shielding the young wearer from illness and misfortune while ensuring their safe and healthy growth.

Bali, Indonesia / 20th century

Ikat ceremonial cloth (cepuk) with floral and geometric pattern

The “cepuk,” a ceremonial cloth from Bali whose name signifies “confrontation with divine power,” is crafted from hand-spun cotton using weft ikat techniques. The design is influenced by Indian patola textiles, featuring a red ground adorned with floral and geometric patterns. Triangular teeth-shaped motifs along the borders are believed to ward off evil. The Balinese consider the cepuk to be imbued with protective forces and use it as temple offerings, ceremonial attire, and funerary cloth.

Sarawak, Malaysia / 19th century

Ikat ceremonial cloth (pua kumbu) with crocodile and geometric design

The “pua kumbu” stands as the most refined and sacred textile of Sarawak's Iban people. Woven from cotton through the warp ikat technique, it features patterns inspired by nature, dreams, and spiritual beliefs, incorporating animal, plant, human, spirit, and geometric motifs. The Iban view the pua kumbu as a source of protection and blessing, using it in festivals and rites of passage, and treasuring it as a family heirloom.

Laos / 20th century

Brocaded ceremonial banner (tung) with temple, stupa, figure and animal motifs

The ceremonial banner “tung” is a narrow, vertically hanging flag popular in regions practicing Theravada Buddhism, such as northern Thailand, Laos, Myanmar's Shan State, and southwestern China. Mostly woven by female devotees, these banners are offered to temples during festivals or ceremonies, symbolizing the accumulation of merit for the deceased and blessings for the future. They usually have white ground with vibrant supplementary weft decorations. Common motifs include religious structures such as temples and stupas, as well as animals, figures, plants, boats, and geometric patterns.