The Qing official headwear or (), also referred as the Official hats of the Qing dynasty or Mandarin hat in English, is a generic term which refers to the types of (), a headgear, worn by the officials of the Qing dynasty in China. The Qing official headwear typically forms of part of the system as opposed to the system and were completely different from the types of used in the previous dynasties. The inside of the hat however was red in colour; there was a knot on the top of the hat which was typically made of red threads.
thumb|right|150px|Liangmao
() was the official hat worn by the officials in the Qing dynasty during the summer seasons; it was a typical form of Manchu headwear items in .
Construction and design
It consisted of a black velvet cap in winter, or a hat woven in rattan or similar materials in summer, both with a button on the top. The button or knob would become a finial during formal court ceremonies held by the Emperor.
Jewelries and accessories
thumb|left|150px|Porcelain hat pin
Officials would have to change their tops on the hat, for non-formal ceremonies or daily businesses. Red silk tassels extended down from the finial to cover the hat, and a large peacock feather (with one to three "eyes") could be attached to the back of the hat, should the merit of wearing it have been granted by the emperor.
The colour and shape of the finial depended on the wearer's grade:
- The royalty and nobility used various numbers of pearls.
- An officer of the first grade wore a translucent red ball (originally ruby); second grade, solid red ball (originally coral); third grade, translucent blue ball (originally sapphire); fourth grade, solid blue ball; fifth grade, translucent white ball (originally crystal); sixth grade, solid white ball (originally mother of pearl). Officers of the seventh to ninth grade wore gold or clear amber balls of varied designs.
See also
- Tang official headwear
- Song official headwear
- List of headgear
- Red hat merchant