This is rather a thin book with less than 40 pages and it actually is a companion of an exhibition (The Manchu Dragon: Costumes of China - The Chi'ng Dynasty, 1980-1981) in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The book is quite a bargain that I got a few years ago and I was drawn to the cover more than its content. It does a good job in providing brief information of the Chi'ng costumes with such fine writing:
"[...] The symbolism is complete only when the coat is worn. The human body becomes the world axis; the neck opening, the gate of heaven or apex of the universe, separates the material world of the coat from the realm of the spiritual represented by the wearer's head." /p.14/

I was also intrigued to read the description of the silk-making process in the last few pages, which "the Chinese kept exclusively for themselves for thousands of years". The Manchus' skilful craftsmanship in embroidery can be seen in each piece of art accompanied the text, which made me wonder about how much time and effort they have to put in.

The book really kicked off my curiosity in Asian arts & cultures again (as an Asian kid, I should have read more about this subject, what a shame.)