Kingfisher Feather Beads in Silver with Longitudinal Bands of Turquoise Kingfisher Feathers, Sold Individually
SKU: ASO-249
Sale price
$75.00
Shipping calculated at checkout
Only 6 in stock
Description
- These beads are priced and sold individually
- Very rare antique silver oval beads are marked with silver bands like pointy melons. Between these bands kingfisher feathers cover the bead from end to end. This style has by far the most kingfisher feathers and thus is also the most easily damaged, only 6 perfect beads. These are priced higher than the others for their rarity, but I am selling some with minimal damage at ASO-251.
- The process is similar to the famous cloisonne techniques except that rather than enamel, kingfisher feathers were used.
- While other Chinese art forms gained fame worldwide, kingfisher jewelry was little known outside of China. The technique, known as Tuia-tsui or Diancui, has been used on hairpins, headdresses, fans, and beads for over 1000 years.
- It involved collecting and carefully cutting tiny kingfisher feathers to the desired shapes and adhering them to the metal.
- Kingfisher feather beads are even more rare than hair pins because they were made for a shorter period of time in the final days of this art form, which ended during the Chinese Communist Revolution. The last workshop specializing in Tian-tsui closed in 1933.
- The beads are in stunning condition, having been preserved in a box with special compartments like a miniature egg carton, to hold each bead protected and separated from others. They came to us with the inventory of a Washington DC Chinatown store when it closed around 2020. I'm delighted to finally offer them to you now.
- Every serious bead collection should have at least one of these!
- And they can be made into jewelry. Admittedly fragile, I recommend only using them in earrings, where they are much less likely to be damaged by contact with coarse fabrics or harder substances.