Featured Help with Chinese silver marks on hair ornaments please.

Two lovely Chinese silver gilt hair ornaments. Does anyone recognize the marks? Or help translate please?
Thanks for looking.

 

I looked around but didn't find anything very helpful.
I did notice that many/most of antique Chinese hair ornaments shaped like this are called barrettes, if that might be useful in future searching...
They're just beautiful.

 

I knew these looked familiar.

They're called cucuk sanggul (Malay. Literally 'Bun-pokers', as in hair-buns).

They were common in the Straits Settlements, especially among the Straits Chinese Nyonyas (women). Often made of silver, although they could be made of brass or copper, and really fancy ones, out of gold.

Yours would date to the middle or late 1800s I suspect, and would have been made in Singapore, Penang, Malacca, or possibly Java or Sumatra (strongholds of Peranakan society in the 1800s). If it is straits chinese (and I have no reason to think it isn't), then they would've been handmade by a Peranakan silversmith, usually as a commissioned piece of jewelry to a wealthy bibik (married lady of leisure )

Peranakan/Straits Chinese jewelry is extremely rare. I would guard those with your life. Hardly any of it still exists these days. And when it does, people want thousands of dollars for them. I have a few cheaper pieces which I bought and inherited, and even those were bloody hard to find.

I recognised them at once, from how intricate they are. It's a trademark of all things Peranakan.

Here's a blog which specialises in Peranakan antiques, and this is his page on cucuk sanggul. Anything look familiar?? :

http://enticz.blogspot.com.au/2011/03/cucuk-sanggul.html

More varieties of cucuk sanggul:

http://enticz.blogspot.com.au/2015/01/cucuk-sanggul-2.html

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If you're the superstitious type who doesn't want them - I'll happily take them off your hand! I have their compadres, which are feeling a bit lonely...

 

I've looked around on Chinese Export Silver sites finding nothing definite. The closest one, not identical, is that of Luen Hing of Shanghai c1880-1920. The top half the left mark in your 3rd pic looks like his mark on the following webpage. I have taking the liberty of editing your pic marking the area.
Scroll about 1/3 of the way down the page to the 24th maker's marks, Luen Hing.
http://www.chineseargent.com/home/chinese-silver-hallmark

--- Susan

 

The following webpage has several Chinese Export Silver marks bear the bottom. You might look through them.
http://m.cesgallery.com/

--- Susan

 

Thanks Susan and Shangas.
I think there is a connection between your two answers.

I can only find two sites which associate this particular shape with Peranakan culture. One is the one you mentioned, which also says the Canton enamel one is Peranakan. I have never found any evidence that Canton enamel was also made in the Straits. The other is the online East Indies Museum, which is not known for its accuracy, every time I look I find a crucial mistake.
Other sources on Peranakan hair jewellery only show the classic chignon pins, with long pins (to poke in the hairbun), either single pronged, or with two or more. They are traditional East Asian, and as you mentioned, are called cucuk sanggul in Malay and Indonesian. The Peranakan chignon pins were made with Peranakan motifs.
Here are Indonesian cucuk sanggul from my collection, other countries had different styles:


I think the connection between your two answers is coastal China - Canton, Shanghai, source of a lot of Chinese export silver.
These hair ornaments were probably made there. It is likely that some were exported to the Straits and worn by Peranakan ladies, just like Cantonese arts and artifacts were exported to the Straits and used by Peranakan families and institutions.

By the way Shangas, the two beauties are very happy here, lots of friends.

 

The marks aren't very clear, but the upside-down one looks like 荣華 Rong Hua. The first two characters of the other look like 中和 Zhong He, with the third character not clear. Again, these are more like guesses.

 

The VAST majority of Peranakan families came from southern China (We're talking CENTURIES and CENTURIES ago). Places like Canton, Hong Kong, etc. So the link would definitely be there. The jewelry made or worn in southern Chinese provinces would have been VERY familiar to Pernakan women in the Straits Settlements in the 1800s.

And yes, a lot of Chinese stuff was made and exported to the Straits Settlements. It was certainly a thing which happened in the 1800s. Wealthy Straits families wanted nice Asian jewelry or furniture and accessories, and they could buy it in China and have it shipped to say, Penang.

Given the similarities, I think these could've come from either place. Either the Straits, or China. They seem to have been common to both places.

 

Thanks khl!

 

Absolutely. The link always remained, even when there was intermarriage with local people, and the Peranakan developed their own culture. Because that crucial trade route, the spice route, always remained. I think I told you before about my 15th century ancestor Gan Eng Cu, he was the Chinese captain (mayor) of Tuban, one of the main trading towns in Java in those days.

 

No you did not.

 

Serious omission on my part.
Gan Eng Cu (Chu) was one of the Cantonese Muslims in Indonesia. The Chinese Muslims were among the first Muslims in Indonesia. He is also called Haji Gan Eng Cu, Haji means he went on pilgrimage Mecca, and was the mayor of Tuban 14th-15th century.
His son became Adipati of Tuban, aristocracy, and after that the family became a Javanese ruling dynasty.
I am a descendant of Gan Eng Cu's daughter, Nyai Ageng Manila. She was called Dewi Candrawati after she married Sunan Ampel, one of the Wali Sanga, or nine Muslim saints of Java. Sunan Ampel was a descendant of Muhammad and a member of the royal family of Champa. Champa is now part of Vietnam.

 

The first picture is with the chinese character posted upside down. It's pronounced as "rong hua" (荣華) meaning glory, splendor and great wealth.
Second picture is read "zhong he lou" (中和楼), which is a company's name.
Both marks are actually the company's name for the silver smiths who created the beautiful pieces of antiques you have. Very nice.
Enticz

 

Thank you very much @Enticz , great information. And welcome to the forum, of course.

 

Glad I can help...

 

Thank you...

 

Enticz, don't you have a blog? Your username looks familiar...

 

Welcome to Antiquers Enticz!

 

I thought I recognized it as well.

 

Welcome Enticz.