In ancient China, brilliant ld vessels and gleaming silverware were important status symbols. Normally, such luxuries were the exclusive property of royalty and nobility. With their auspicious connotations and exquisite decorative motifs, ld and silver vessels gradually came to play an important role in shaping style and fashion. Indeed, ld and silver jewelry and objects remain prized possessions to this day. The National Museum of History’s Chinese New Year exhibition for 2015, lden Blossom on Gemmed Treasures: Gem-Inlaid Gilt Filigree Collection From Hui Fung Ge, offers a fascinating glimpse into China’s time-honored tradition of gem-inlaid filigree craftsmanship, showcasing a series of exquisite silver-gilt adornments generously loaned to the museum from the Hui Fung Ge collection of Ms. Chiu Yu-Fen.

ld was already being used in China as early as the Shang Dynasty. By the Warring States Era, gilding technology had reached a high level of maturity, and, by the Han Dynasty, Chinese craftsmen had already mastered the techniques for casting ld pellets and drawing out ld into wire. During the Tang Dynasty a variety of ld and silver utensils of great beauty were created, including food vessels, containers, pendants, medicine boxes, religious artifacts, etc. and cultural contacts with the West led to the adoption of increasingly diverse shapes and decorative motifs. By this stage, a comprehensive range of processes for working with ld and silver had been developed in China, including forging, chasing, granulation, riveting, casting, welding, openwork and other special metal-working techniques. From the Song and Yuan dynasties onwards, it was customary for the social elite to use ld and silver vessels to demonstrate their wealth and status. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the imperial court operated special workshops to manufacture ld vessels and silverware, and considerable emphasis was placed on the development of advanced filigree inlay techniques. The apogee of technical expertise was reached during this era, with the perfection of visually striking gem-inlaid gilt filigree works featuring richly colored inlaid gemstones.

These dazzling, eye-catching masterpieces are the product of filigree and inlay techniques of immense technical difficulty. This unique type of metalwork takes advantage of the high ductility of ld and silver, which is heated, drawn out into wire, and formed into intricate patterns and welded onto the surface of various objects to create filigree decoration. ld or silver wires that are woven or twisted together, or built up in layers both are referred to as “filigree”. Filigree decoration with inlaid gemstones is known as “gem-inlaid filigree.”

The jade burial suit, made of pieces of jade linked together with ld wire, which was excavated from the tomb of the Prince of Chu (an imperial prince of the Han Dynasty) shows that basic techniques for making ld wire had already been developed by this time. During the Tang Dynasty, the use of ld and silver wire, along with various gem-inlaying techniques, had reached a higher level of maturity, the main applications being hair ornaments and accessories. During the Yuan Dynasty, these skills were perfected still further; the filigree gem-inlaid ld hat crest, a piece of filigree work originally made for a Yuan Dynasty prince and excavated from the Ming Dynasty tomb of Prince Zhuang of Liang is one surviving example. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the techniques for making gem-inlaid and jade-inlaid gilt filigree pieces were widely used and reached new heights of development. The most famous pieces from this period are the lden Crown of the Wanli Emperor, woven from ld wire, and the gem-inlaid filigree crown, decorated with kingfisher feathers, of Empress Xiaoduan, both of which were excavated from the famed Dingling Tomb of the Ming Dynasty.

This exhibition features 38 exquisite pieces from the Hui Fung Ge collection, including gilt filigree baskets, dran boats, padas, lanterns, incense burners, and a money tree. All of these works feature filigree wire woven into the shapes of auspicious symbols, such as coiled drans, luan birds and phoenixes, peonies, swans, black tortoises, and flowery blossoms. Together, these pieces show visitors to the exhibition the diverse effects and shades of color that can be achieved with gem-inlaid gilt filigree; every single work embodies the creative brilliance and expertise of the craftsman who made it, and each piece is spectacularly beautiful in its own unique way. By holding this special exhibition, timed to coincide with the Chinese year of the at, the National Museum of History gives visitors a rare opportunity to appreciate up close the delicate beauty of these masterpieces of traditional gilt filigree.