Material: Brass, beads
Style: China
Size:  Height 5 cm, Width 3 cm
Order Number: MHSACA1

The tradition of jewelry-making in China goes back at least to the Neolithic Period, and silver work at least as far back as 300 BC. Qing dynasty (1644 – 1912) silversmiths combined usefulness with elegance, grace and beauty.

All the ethnic groups shared the same concerns> Everyone wanted a happy marriage, health, prosperity and a long life. To help achieve this they made offerings to the gods – and relied on the power of special amulets.

This amulet is in the shape of double fish – which was for marital bliss and double abundance.

Late 19th century – Early 20th century.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

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Material: Silver
Style: China
Size: Diameter 6 cm, Width 2 cm
Order Number: MHSACB1

During the Qing dynasty (1644 – 1912) wealthy Chinese Han aristocracy, Mongol and rich minority women  loved and wore silver bracelets. Some were given as betrothal gifts. The minorities gave then as presents to their future wives.

They served as both as ornaments and status symbols. The wealthier the person, the more they owned. A rich woman often commissioned silversmiths to make them pieces and they were passed down from generation to generation.

There are Chinese characters.

The Sanxing (Three Stars) are the gods of the three celestial bodies considered essential in Chinese astrology and mythology: Jupiter, Ursa Major, and Canopus. They are Fu, Lu, and Shou.

Fu, Lu, and Shou are also the embodiments of Fortune (Fu), presiding over the planet Jupiter, Prosperity (Lu), presiding over Ursa Major,, and Longevity (Shou) presiding over Canopus.

They emerged from Chinese folk religion. Their representation as three, old, bearded, wise men dates back to the Ming dynasty, when the gods of the three stars were represented in human form for the first time.

Statues of these three gods are found on the facades of folk religion’s temples and ancestral shrines, in nearly every Chinese home and on small altars in shops with a glass of water, an orange or other auspicious offerings, especially during Chinese New Year.

Traditionally, they are arranged right to left (so Shou is on the left of the viewer, Lu in the middle, and Fu on the far right).

The clasp has a chain with a very small delicate key and heart hanging from it.

Early – Mid 20th century.

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Material: Enamel
Style: China
Size:  Length 9 cm
Order Number: MHSACFNG1

Finger guards are hollow metal sheaths which protect the long fingernails of aristocratic women. They are the most famous symbol of the Qing dynasty. They were usually made of luxurious materials such as jade, silver, gold or tortoiseshell, then inlaid with precious gems to show off the wealth of the wearer.

They are called 指甲套 zhijiatao (literally: fingernail covering) or 護指 huzhi (finger protection) in Chinese. They became popular in the Qing dynasty (1644 – 1911 AD) and proclaimed social status. They showed the wearer did not have to do manual labour.

Empress Dowager Cixi (1835-1908) (above) wore fingernail guards on a regular basis. She loved sitting for elaborately staged photographs and many of these show her wearing long fingernail guards but only two or three on each hand.

Women usually had longer nails than men, which may be the reason we tend to see fingernail guards being worn by women in pictures and paintings.

They predate the Qing dynasty.

In 1979 a gold pair were found in a tomb from the Warring States Period (475 – 221 BC).

A pair of gold fingernail guards from the Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD) is on display in the Jilin Provincial Museum.

Ten matching cast silver guards were found in a Xian tomb from the Sui dynasty (581 – 618 AD).

Nails could only be cut on auspicious days. A member of the nobility kept his fingernail clippings so that he could be buried with them. When warlord Sun Dianying and his army pillaged the tomb of the Dowager Empress Cixi in 1928 they found a bag of her fingernails.

Everything of the body should be kept intact, because it signifies respect towards one’s parents, who give us our bodies, by not damaging one’s own body. A fingernail guard helps do this.

They range from 3 to 15 centimetres and usually come in pairs, worn over the ring finger and little finger. They can be worn on one hand only or on both hands.

The pin was added later to make it into an attractive brooch.

Early 20th century.

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Material: Silver?
Style: China
Size:  Length 21 cm, Width 2 cm
Order Number: MHSACHH1

A woman’s hairpin in the Qing dynasty (1636–1912) displayed her status and was a large part of her dowry. Parents gave hairpins to their daughter for her dowry.

Noblewomen wore much of their wealth in their hair. Hairpins were of all sizes. Distinct ethnic hairstyles required distinct hairpins. They displayed symbols for happiness, fertility, wealth and marital bliss.

The hairpin seems to have a man’s face at the top, with an elaborate headdress. There are symbols of animals on both sides.

Early – mid 20th century.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

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Material: Silver
Style: China
Size:  Diameter 2 cm
Order Number: MHSACHA1

The tradition of jewelry-making in China goes back at least to the Neolithic Period, and silver work at least as far back as 300 BC. Qing dynasty (1644 – 1912) silversmiths combined usefulness with elegance, grace and beauty.

Chinese  infants’ and children’s hats were elaborately embroidered and designed to give protection from evil spirits, demons and ghosts. They were worn until about the age of five. Maternal grandmothers made them and decorated them with silver amulets for protection and status.

The adornments, which would have been sewn in, represent the Eight Immortals. In Chinese mythology, the Ba Xian or Eight Immortals, are a group of legendary heroes who  fight for justice and against evil.

The Immortals are human beings, who became immortal through self-cultivation. They sit between human beings and gods and act as mediators between earth and heaven. They are models for achieving immortality through leading a morally blameless life.

They are important figures in Taoism and are the subject of many paintings, potteries and sculptures.

The Eight Immortals.

Their names are:

• Cao Guo Jiu—holding a jade tablet.
• Han Xiang Zi—holding or playing a flute, a musical prodigy.
• He Xian Gu—the only woman of the Ba Xian. She carries a lotus flower or a reed pipe instrument called the sheng. 
• Lan Cai He—holding a basket of fruit.
• Li Ti Guai—holding a cane and gourd.
• Lü Dong Bin—dressed in scholar’s robes and holding a large sword.
• Zhang Guo Lao—riding a white mule and carrying a bamboo fish  drum, mallets and a peach of immortality.
• Zhong Li Quan—wearing robes that reveal his bare belly and a long beard that reaches his navel.

The Ba Xian are still popular subjects in art, literature,  movies and television.

There are examples in Four Centuries of Silver, Personal Adornment in the Qing Dynasty and After, Margaret Duda, Times Editions, 2002, page 129.

20th century.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

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Material: Silver
Style: China
Size:  Height 2.5 cm, Width 2 cm
Order Number: MHSACHA2

The tradition of jewelry-making in China goes back at least to the Neolithic Period, and silver work at least as far back as 300 BC. Qing dynasty (1644 – 1912) silversmiths combined usefulness with elegance, grace and beauty.

Chinese  infants’ and children’s hats were elaborately embroidered and designed to give protection from evil spirits, demons and ghosts. They were worn until about the age of five. Maternal grandmothers made them and decorated them with silver amulets for protection and status.

The adornments, which would have been sewn in, represent the Eight Immortals. In Chinese mythology, the Ba Xian or Eight Immortals, are a group of legendary heroes who  fight for justice and against evil.

The Immortals are human beings, who became immortal through self-cultivation. They sit between human beings and gods and act as mediators between earth and heaven. They are models for achieving immortality through leading a morally blameless life.

They are important figures in Taoism and are the subject of many paintings, potteries and sculptures.

The Eight Immortals.

Their names are:

• Cao Guo Jiu—holding a jade tablet.
• Han Xiang Zi—holding or playing a flute, a musical prodigy.
• He Xian Gu—the only woman of the Ba Xian. She carries a lotus flower or a reed pipe instrument called the sheng. 
• Lan Cai He—holding a basket of fruit.
• Li Ti Guai—holding a cane and gourd.
• Lü Dong Bin—dressed in scholar’s robes and holding a large sword.
• Zhang Guo Lao—riding a white mule and carrying a bamboo fish  drum, mallets and a peach of immortality.
• Zhong Li Quan—wearing robes that reveal his bare belly and a long beard that reaches his navel.

The Ba Xian are still popular subjects in art, literature,  movies and television.

One (bottom right) is missing and has been replaced by the same one on bottom left and the 2nd one on both rows look the same.

There are examples in Four Centuries of Silver, Personal Adornment in the Qing Dynasty and After, Margaret Duda, Times Editions, 2002, page 129.

20th century.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

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Material: Jade
Style: China
Size:  Height 5 cm, Pin: Length 16 cm
Order Number: MHSACJH

Archeological discoveries at Zhoukoudian in China, where one of the first specimens of Homo erectus (Homo erectus pekinensis), dubbed Peking Man was found in 1921), dated to between 500,000 and 230,000 years ago, have revealed perforated beads being used as personal ornaments by Paleolithic hunter gatherers, and by the Neolithic period around 5000 BC jade-carving was known in what is now Zhejiang Province.

Jade is believed to have auspicious qualities, associated with luck and health and a link between heaven and earth. It is the per-eminent material for the Chinese.

Women wore jade rings, earrings, bracelets, pendants and sewed jade pieces to their skirts. Jade pieces are shaped by grinding, not carving. Real jade cannot be scratched with steel, has an oily appearance and causes a drop of water to bead, not spread, on the surface.

In Imperial China first prize for athletes was jade, second prize was gold.

Early 20th century.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

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Material: Jade
Style: China
Size:  Diameter 6.5 cm
Order Number: MHSACJP

By the Neolithic period around 5000 BC jade-carving was known in what is now Zhejiang Province.

Jade is believed to have auspicious qualities, associated with luck and health and a link between heaven and earth. It is the per-eminent material for the Chinese.

Women wore jade rings, earrings, bracelets, pendants and sewed jade pieces to their skirts. Jade pieces are shaped by grinding, not carving. Real jade cannot be scratched with steel, has an oily appearance and causes a drop of water to bead, not spread, on the surface.

In Imperial China first prize for athletes was jade, second prize was gold.

Early 20th century.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

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Material: Silver
Style: China
Size:  Height 36, Width of the horse  8 cm
Order Number: MHSACTAM1

The tradition of jewelry-making in China goes back at least to the Neolithic Period, and silver work at least as far back as 300 BC. Qing dynasty (1644 – 1912) silversmiths were expert in elegance, grace and beauty.

Early 20th century.

There is an example in Four Centuries of Silver, Personal Adornment in the Qing Dynasty and After, Margaret Duda, Times Editions, 2002, page 88.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

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Material: Silver, jade, glass bead, claw, silver bell
Style: Yi people, China
Size:  Height 40 cm
Order Number: MHSACGK1

The tradition of jewelry-making in China goes back at least to the Neolithic Period, and silver work at least as far back as 300 BC. Qing dynasty (1644 – 1912) silversmiths combined usefulness with elegance, grace and beauty, even for such items as personal grooming kits.

Early 20th century.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

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Material: Silver, jade, glass bead, claw, silver bell
Style: Yi people, China
Size:  Height 27 cm
Order Number: MHSACGK2

The tradition of jewelry-making in China goes back at least to the Neolithic Period, and silver work at least as far back as 300 BC. Qing dynasty (1644 – 1912) silversmiths combined usefulness with elegance, grace and beauty, even for such items as personal grooming kits.

Early 20th century.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Antique Chinese Yi People Grooming Kit 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Silver, jade, carnelian, enamel fish
Style: Yi people, China
Size:  Height 45 cm
Order Number: MHSACGK3

The tradition of jewelry-making in China goes back at least to the Neolithic Period, and silver work at least as far back as 300 BC. Qing dynasty (1644 – 1912) silversmiths combined usefulness with elegance, grace and beauty, even for such items as personal grooming kits.

Early 20th century.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Antique Chinese Yi People Grooming Kit 3 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Silver, jade, carnelian
Style: Yi people, China
Size:  Height 37 cm
Order Number: MHSACGK4

The tradition of jewelry-making in China goes back at least to the Neolithic Period, and silver work at least as far back as 300 BC. Qing dynasty (1644 – 1912) silversmiths combined usefulness with elegance, grace and beauty, even for such items as personal grooming kits.

Early 20th century.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Antique Chinese Yi People Grooming Kit 4 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.