This is the top half of the bridal wedding garment. It is a T-shaped garment with straight cut sleeves that are broad and long and is modelled after the designs of Ming Period costumes. This red garment has sleeves with parallel rows of embroidered designs and the front of the garment features auspicious Chinese motifs such as the phoenix, peony blossoms and other birds. The phoenix symbolises high virtue while peonies are symbols of spring, which is considered a good time to get married. The motifs are depicted in pairs as even numbers are considered auspicious in the Peranakan culture and can also symbolise the wedding couple. Wedding couples in Singapore and Malacca were usually flanked by a page boy and page girl while a wedding couple from Penang would usually have a pair of page boys and page girls. Most of these garments were manufactured in China by skilled, professional embroiderers before being shipped to their Straits Chinese customers.
