Yang Zi’s Ming-style square collar in the ancient costume drama “Jia Ye (家业)” is truly eye – catching. Square collars are rare even today, so were they really popular in ancient times? Netizens are saying it’s such a niche style!
Let’s start with the fact that similar rectangular and square collars already existed during the Shang and Zhou dynasties. However, the structure of these collars still requires further research, and they weren’t very popular. Among traditional collars, the cross – collar was the most common.
Rich Ming – style Collars
By the Ming Dynasty, there was a wide variety of collars, including stand collars, round collars, square collars, and cross collars. While the front – opening collars popular in the Tang and Song Dynasties and classic cross collars were common, square collars were relatively rare. But they often appeared in Ming Dynasty portraits. You could wear a cross – collar or stand – collar inside a square collar, like Yang Zi wearing a stand – collar and Han Dongjun a cross – collar in the leaked photos of “Jia Ye”
Artifacts with Square Collars
Many clothing artifacts unearthed from the Ming Dingling Mausoleum feature square collar elements. Most of them are short – sleeved or semi – sleeved, such as the Embroidered Jacket with Hundreds of Children and Flowers and the Embroidered Jacket with the Blessing of Boundless Happiness. Square collar jackets could be paired with badges on the front and back, and auspicious words were often added to the patterns.
Versatile Square Collar Designs
The square collar could be applied to long – sleeved jackets, sleeveless vests (armor vests), and half – sleeves. There were even square collar robes in the Ming Dynasty. As recorded in “Jiao Shi Bi Cheng (焦氏笔乘)” by Jiao Hong, the design of the square collar had its own unique meaning.
Chinese clothing has had a far – reaching influence. The square collar design element spread to countries like South Korea and Japan. You can still see this traditional style in neighboring East Asian countries, like the “Doko” item in Japan.
Yang Zi’s square collar half – sleeve outfit follows the style of Ming Dynasty paintings of ladies, which is the popular jacket – and – skirt combination of that era. The jacket is double – layered with a lining. Square collar vests and half – sleeves can be paired with a vertical front jacket inside and different types of skirts below.
The square collar fits well with the layering feature of Chinese clothing, showing a three – dimensional sense in a flat structure. In modern times, fashionable clothing with square collars is still rare. It’s amazing that about five hundred years ago in the Ming Dynasty, there were such special designs. Our clothing culture is definitely worth exploring for modern fashion.
As we look back at these ancient clothing styles, we realize there’s so much more to discover. The unique square collar is just one example of the rich heritage of Chinese clothing. Maybe in the future, we’ll see more modern fashion inspired by these ancient designs, bringing the charm of the past into the present.
