Chinese Daoist Wedding Bracelet

Colour was the first thing that attracted me to this bracelet... red and green... with vibrant blue highlights.

In China red and green are the colours of life ... associated with summer and spring ... traditional wedding clothing is red...fertility and progeny are associated with the colour green.

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Here the red enamel is a bottle gourd... a Daoist symbol associated with longevity, fertility and prosperity... and the gourds are shown with ribbons attached, which give the gourd supernatural powers.

The three carved jade figures at the centre of this bracelet are; Fu, Lu and Shou  ( see my previous Qing Dynasty Silver Jade Lock post) ... the Three Stellar Gods.

This is a wonderful example of Qing era jade being used in early 20th century settings...

c. 1930-40, 5 curved links of mesh with openwork cloisonné.  Marked-SILVER MADE IN CHINA, 5.1cm x 18cm. Three white jade figures; 3cm x 1.4cm, 2.8cm x 1.3cm, 2.5cm x 1.5cm.