Just curious about this piece I saw on worthpoint: https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/chinese-900-sterling-silver-foo-dog-1902511452 Was it really old Chinese silver? Doesn't really look right to me. Thanks for looking.
Old? maybe as "old" as early 20th century,but young by Chinese standards.Described as filigree but it looks like granulation and is it a Foo Dog or a Dragon?
Yes yes, I know China didn't just become a country in the last hundred years and this isn't some ancient imperial artifact. I've seen a similar face on a few other pieces now, some describing as foo dog, others as dragon. Seems a more touristy type piece than anything really interesting. Granulation seems correct. Thanks for that keyword.
https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/antique-strait-chinese-peranakani-900-1882502722 this one has the keyword Perkanakani (Peranakan), which I remember from the "incense holder" thread. Also, 900 silver again.
"...The Straits Or Peranakani Chinese were Skilled Silversmiths who left mainland China in the late 19th century and settled in Burma, Indonesia Singapore etc...." I can tell you now that's incorrect. To be Peranakan, you have to be BORN IN INDONESIA AND SINGAPORE, or directly descended from people who were. That's what makes you STRAITS CHINESE. No Straits Chinese Peranakan ever migrated from China and set up shop and called themselves Peranakan. The real peranakan would spit at them if they did.
AJ will certainly pop out here , Waiting for her, I can say it isn't Chinese, the "Foo dog" isn't one It is Balinese, and a representation of Rangda, Balinese demon queen https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rangda I have a bracelet with same face
Kyra is right (of course) it is Balinese, depicting Rangda, the queen who summoned the demon army against her wrongdoers. I always see these described as Chinese, but they are CLASSIC Balinese. Here is my Rangda bracelet, bought with a matching ring, pendant and earrings in 1970 in Bali from the silversmith who had made it. He was not Chinese, not even Peranakan, but came from a very long line of Balinese caste-appropriate silversmiths.
Exactly. And 19th century? Peranakan have been in the region for centuries, and they are a mix of Chinese and locals, as is their very specific culture. My first Peranakan ancestor, that I know of, was Gan Eng Cu in the 15th century. He never set up shop from China, but was a captain (mayor) with strong ties to the royal court of the Majapahit empire. Both his children married East Javanese royalty. That goes to show how much the Peranakan were part of Straits society. Not 19th century newcomers at all.
My great-grandfather was a Peranakan goldsmith. And my father's family has been Peranakan for centuries. I've traced it back about four or five generations myself, but I'm sure it goes back MUCH further. They were peranakan to their bootstraps and to hear my grandmother talk, if someone Sinkeh from China ever dared to suggest that they were in any way similar, they would've been kicked out of town using the very finest of Peranakan handmade slippers. Cultural nitpicking aside, I see nothing in that silverware that would suggest a Peranakan background. It just doesn't have the finesse of detail or the Chinese-inspired motifs.
The Balinese rarely use filigree, which is one of the characteristics of Peranakan silverware. The finesse of Balinese silver lies in the tiny granulation, which is always mind-boggling. You can see it in both bracelets. In fact, some Balinese silver decoration is almost entirely made of granules, like on my Balinese Art Deco brooch:
Wow! What a great collection of stories, information and genealogy plus a definitive identification of the box. This site amazes me all the time. Well done everyone and thanks. You should be very happy Kronos.
Thanks everyone for the information. Learned quite a bit. Here's why I decided to ask about the worthpoint item: https://www.shopgoodwill.com/Item/54488390 Much more ornate, but damaged. It went over what I was willing to spend.
