MSI346

MIAO OR DONG SILVER-PLATED BRASS EARRING – TRADITIONAL DESIGN – SOUTHWEST CHINA (YUNNAN) – LATE 20TH TO EARLY 21ST CENTURY

THIS LONG EARRING FEATURES THREE EMBOSSED DIAMOND-SHAPED PLATES WITH TRADITIONAL MIAO OR DONG MOTIFS, JOINED IN A VERTICAL FORM. THE UPPER COIL AND RING DISPLAY HAND-WRAPPED WIREWORK, FAITHFULLY CONTINUING TRIBAL JEWELRY STYLES FROM THE SOUTHWESTERN HIGHLANDS OF CHINA.

MADE FROM BRASS WITH SILVER PLATING, THE PIECE SHOWS A BRASS CORE ON SCRATCH TESTING, INDICATING IT IS NOT SOLID SILVER. WHILE NEWLY MADE, IT FOLLOWS AUTHENTIC DESIGNS AND TECHNIQUES PASSED DOWN WITHIN THESE ETHNIC COMMUNITIES.

A GENUINE ETHNIC CREATION—TRADITIONAL IN FORM AND CULTURAL EXPRESSION—THIS PIECE IS A CONTEMPORARY EXAMPLE OF LIVING TRIBAL HERITAGE, NOT AN ANTIQUE BUT MADE BY THE PEOPLE WHO ORIGINATED THE STYLE.