Antique Chinese Silver Enamel Niello Earrings CE09

$450.00 AUD

Collectible, museum quality antique Chinese Earrings with Niello.

A matching set with long chains, in two parts with a disc that fits into the top part.

Length: Top of large hook to bottom of dangle:  17cm/6.5inches

Weight: 67gm

 

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Description

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I bought these highly collectible and rare silver and niello Chinese earrings in an entire collection from the Afghani grandfather of one of my dealers in Turkey, who he said had been collecting these for a long time.

These date from 1900-1930. Some may have been worn by the Tujia and Qiang ethnic groups, essentially northwestern China, in the Qinghai, Gansu provinces. Gansu province is where the Silk Road enters China and the people there have been trading with Afghanistan for 2000 years.  The earrings are fairly rare today as most were destroyed or confiscated in the communist and cultural revolutions,  destroying most ethnic and cultural treasures. In the 1970s the communist government exported lots of reconstructed pieces to the West, but most were already destroyed.  It’s a tragedy that the skills were lost, as during the revolution, anyone with these skills could be sent to labour camps and killed.  Look here!

The symbolism and design are all Chinese. Most have to do with longevity and fertility, possibly wedding earrings or a wedding gift. Some of them would have had kingfisher feathers embedded in the design, but age has removed these.

Information attributed to Christine Lee, archeologist and Chinese scholar.

This set has the application of niello, instead of the more common enamel. Look here for more info!

These earrings are part of my collection of fifteen sets, numbering CE1-CE15.  It would be a shame to break up the collection, but it is also time for them to find a new custodian.

Please peruse the photographs carefully. They are an essential part of the description. ALL my old beads and pieces have dings, dents and missing bits – they are part of the charm, and show the history.  I also have not cleaned these since I acquired them as they’d remove the essential patina that helps determine age and wear.

 


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