Jadeite Hair Pin with Quatrefoil End

Although eyes were certainly drawn to the elaborate hairstyles worn by well-to-do women of the Qing-dynasty, it was the finishing touch of a hairpin or ornament that completed the look. This 19th-century hair accessory is carved of a continuous piece of jadeite, marked with currents of pale celadon, dark green and crème white.

Shaped by hand to a thin, flat form, the jade hairpin tapers to a point at one end and is decorated by a quatrefoil carving at the other. Today, this elegant jade pin lives on as a beautiful object and a fantastic keepsake of the past.