It's Not a Chicken

Here I've been calling it a chicken.  Turns out that it is really a feng or a feng huang.  Who knew?

We found this on eBay.  Here's what the seller had to say:
Description: This is a 19th Century, Qing [Ching] Dynasty, Chinese, embroidered, door
valance, Circa 1880’s. Used as interior, decorative accents for theatersets such as the Chinese
Peking opera. Such valances were often crafted from sturdy materials, embellished via bold
colors and large symbols/imagery, and purposely exaggerated to be visible from a distance.
Characteristics of this truly amazing piece includes: A handsome, centrally placed bird set
among peach blossoms and flora; prominent use of couched gold metallic thread as well as
couched cording; lightly spun silk thread accents/details; dimensional details rendered via
twisted paper cording placed underneath the metallic threads; beige, silk edging adorned
with mirrors in order to attract and reflect light; and rabbit fur edging. This valance is backed
with blue, cotton fabric. Exquisite in nature, it would make a striking statement as a
decorator’s piece on any feature wall. It is a must­have!! Please note, this valance shows
signs of wear commensurate with age and use including silk breakdown, loss of thread, loss
of fur edging, loose threads, missing/damaged mirrors and staining. Additionally, minor
restoration has occurred to include stabilization of some of the metallic threads.
Dimensions: 45.5” x 23.5”

Wikipedia describes it:  A common depiction of fenghuang was of it attacking snakes with its talons and its wings spread. According to the Erya's chapter 17 Shiniao, fenghuang is made up of the beak of a rooster, the face of a swallow, the forehead of a fowl, the neck of a snake, the breast of a goose, the back of a tortoise, the hindquarters of a stag and the tail of a fish.^[1] Today, however, it is often described as a composite of many birds including the head of a golden pheasant, the body of a mandarin duck, the tail of a peacock, the legs of a crane, the mouth of a parrot, and the wings of a swallow.

Sure looks like a chicken, but perhaps it does have a parrot beak.  Do you see the other animals?

Wikipedia provides more information:

Fenghuang  are mythological birds of East Asia that reign over all other birds. The males were originally called feng and the females huang but such a distinction of gender is often no longer made and they are blurred into a single feminine entity so that the bird can be paired with the Chinese dragon, which is traditionally deemed male.

The fenghuang is also called the "August Rooster"  since it sometimes takes the place of the Rooster in the Chinese zodiac. In the West, it is commonly called the Chinese phoenix or simply Phoenix, although mythological similarities with the Western phoenix are superficial.

Now you know!

Some restoration may be wise.  We'll see.  

It's mounted to a rod and hung in a corner away from sunlight.

It should not deteriorate any further, and it's not where it would be touched or bumped.

Definitely adds drama to that corner!

Can you imagine all that fine stitchery for a backdrop for a theater!