Featured Straits Chinese silver-plate Nyonya Belt - Ca. 1900.

This is probably the first, last and only time I would ever buy silver-plate, but here's something you certainly don't see every day...



This is a VERY short silverplate/nickel-silver Straits Chinese ladies' belt. I picked it up from a secondhand jewelry salesman at my local flea-market. It's very short - about 2ft long, I'd say. But I think it's gorgeous

Here it is, with a similar Straits belt I inherited from my grandmother...



Neither of these is solid silver. I'm not THAT rich! Silver and gold ones sell for ridiculous amounts of money. That's if you can even get your hands on them to begin with...

 

Well, that's still the start of a nice collection !!

 

I do have another Peranakan belt which IS solid silver, but it's of an entirely different style.

 

Thank you Shangas for sharing. I never even heard the word Peranakan prior to your post.

I read your History Blog with much interest. Your family photos are lovely.

 

Here's my article on the Peranakan/Straits Chinese, in case you're wondering what they are. My grandmother's family was Peranakan going back at least three or four generations. Grandma, great-grandma, great-great-grandma, and all their relatives and ancestors were full-blooded Peranakan. Belts like these were part of their culture, and were worn by the women to keep their skirts up.

The ones made of gold and silver would've been handmade by a Peranakan silversmith. Today they change hands for anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, if you can buy one which isn't in a museum somewhere. Anything Peranakan is bloody hard to get your hands on. I've been trying for nearly 10 years!

Here's the article:

http://www.throughouthistory.com/?p=3547

 

Very interesting......The shophouses are quite elaborate. And somewhat preserved by historians.

I shall read about the Peranakan art when I return from my scheduled appt........having coffee with my DD Kristin who lives just one house away!!

 

Nice, Shangas! Keep us posted of Peranakan finds.

 

VERY interesting articles!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Thanks Acquitane! Glad you enjoyed reading them as much as I did writing them!!

 

How can you tell if the belt is silver plated and not solid silver?

 

Because of the discolouration and the lack of hallmarks.

 

I have a Peranakan silver belt which I purchased when I lived in Malaysia. Also 2 old photos of Nonya Baba couples. Any idea where I would market them?

 

Welcome, Patricia H. I'll tag @Shangas for you. He's the expert on this stuff here.

 

Hi Patricia.

Would love to see photos of the stuff you mentioned. Best place to sell stuff like that is Singapore and Malaysia - they're the hubs for anything Peranakan.

 

Welcome Patricia. Where are you located? And yes, we would love to see photos.

 

Thank you.

 

How do I resize on a Mac? Thanks.