White Jade Hairpin with Openwork Fish Design and Gemstone Inlay

This long, thin piece of white jade is crafted into a dual-pronged hairpin with a long tongue-shaped end. The obverse features a pair of fish among lotus flowers and leaves in a commonly seen form of openwork with gemstone inlays. Encircling each other with symmetrical positioning, the objects in the design have a vivid, rarely seen three-dimensionality. The reverse is undecorated.

Hairpins (zanzi) were a popular type of adornment among Qing-dynasty (1644–1911) imperial consorts and appeared in a wide variety of styles and designs. The style of this hairpin is unconventional. Although the decoration is simple, the complex use of color is exquisite with a focus on detail and the spirit of the natural world. The lotus (lianhua) and fish (yu) are auspicious symbols as they are homophonous with the concept of successive years (liannian) of abundance (yu).