setting,
loosely, in such a manner as to swing freely. It is the effect of these
dozens or even hundreds of swinging drops that add such grace and
elegance to East Indian jewelry.
In
China, such precious stones as the ruby, sapphire—both blue and
yellow—the emerald, and the pink tourmaline, are not facetted, as with
us, but are generally polished in conformity to the shape of the bead
or other ornament, and never have a lathe-turned or cut appearance;
they are either set in cabochon or as beads, rounded, oval, or
elongated. All these forms, and the colors used by the Chinese, lend
themselves well to combinations with pearls ; and hence pearls are
often found in Chinese jewelry, especially in those ornaments which are
flexible and graceful, in which the pearls and gems are strung on wire
and allowed to swing freely with a gentle tinkle when the wearer moves.
This is not unlike the setting of such gems in ancient Roman times. An
admirable example is shown and described in Bushell's "Chinese Art"
(Vol. II, plate 108, page 90). In this head-dress of a Manchu lady,
there are combined with the pearls, jadeite, amethyst, amber, and
coral, on a gilt silver openwork, with blue kingfisher feathers. This
great cap of state is an admirable example of pure Chinese design and
workmanship. The pendant strings of pearls are occasionally relieved by
a bit of carved jade, carnelian or coral, especially the latter.
Another example, the "cap of state " has silver-gilt openwork and
immortelles (Taoist symbols), and is much enhanced in beauty by a
decoration or inlay of plates of the beautiful blue feathers of the
kingfisher, which are used so extensively and effectively in Chinese
jewelry. The pearls are scattered at intervals over the cap, and ten
strings of them hang from the sides of it. This is believed to be of
Manchu origin by Dr. Stephen W. Bushell, the great Chinese scholar, to
whom we are indebted for the use of the illustration. We are also told
that young ladies in China wear a sort of crown constructed of
pasteboard, covered with silk. This is adorned with pearls, diamonds,
and other jewels.1
The
pearls on many Chinese ornaments were generally strung upon silk, often
with half a dozen or a dozen seed-pearls above and below the large
pearl, to hold the latter in place, and also to add a softness to the
whole jewel. The end pendant pearl, even if pear-shaped, was usually
pierced entirely through, and a wire that was worked through it was
flattened out, and this gold head was again ornamented in some way. A
Chinese pendant from the China-Japan war-loot offers an excellent
illustration of this kind of pearl-setting. This was preserved in a
double box of finely carved gold.
The
rosaries containing 104 pearls, which are used to-day, were mentioned
centuries ago by Marco Polo, and an excellent pearl string
1 Alexander, "The History of Women," London, 1782, Vol. II, p. 171.
