Adornment Atlas
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Materials · metal

Gold

金

jin

A dense, workable precious metal. In Chinese ornament it appears as sheet, wire, granulation and casting, and was often used for the most valued pieces.

Objects in this material

Pair of thin gold sheet ornaments, each cut with the profile of a phoenix and chased with feather detail

Pendant

Textile Ornaments(?): Pair of Phoenixes

Sui and Tang Dynastiesbeaten gold with chased detail

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Thin gold sheet cut in the shape of a phoenix, with chased details on the surface

Pendant

Textile Ornament(?): Phoenix

Sui and Tang Dynastiesbeaten gold with chased detail

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Gold sheet ornament in the form of a phoenix, chased with fine surface detail

Pendant

Textile Ornament(?): Phoenix

Sui and Tang Dynastiesbeaten gold with chased detail

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Pendant of gold mounts set with carved green jade, with a suspension loop at the top

Pendant

Pendant

Qing Dynastygold, carved green jade, rose quartz, and seed pearls

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Court necklace of green jade beads alternating with coral, with spacer beads and a pendant strand

Necklace

Mandarin Necklace

Qing Dynastyjade and coral beads, pendants mounted in gold and enamel

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Long embroidered silk pendant worked with silvered and gilded paper and gold thread in needleloop embroidery

Pendant

Pendant

Song, Liao, Jin and Yuan Dynastiessilk, silvered paper, gilded paper, and gold thread; needleloop embroidery and knotting

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Jadeite, gold and kingfisher feather headdress ornament, qing dynasty, 4.4 cm high.

Headdress fragment

Ornament for Headdress

Qing DynastyGold, feathers, seed pearls, moonstone, jadeite, garnet

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Gold hairpin with a short decorative head and a single tapering shaft, Ming dynasty

Zan (hairpin)

Gold hairpin

Ming DynastyGold

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Circular gold earring of the Ming dynasty, formed as a plain hoop 3.8 cm across

Ear ring

Gold earring

Ming DynastyGold

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Gold earring, ming dynasty, 3.8 cm across.

Ear ring

Earring

Ming DynastyGold

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Gold headdress ornament, qing dynasty, 5.7 cm wide.

Headdress fragment

Fragment of Headdress

Qing DynastyGold, pearls

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Gold and kingfisher feather headdress ornament, qing dynasty, 7.6 cm long.

Headdress fragment

Fragment of Headdress

Qing DynastyGold, pearls, feathers

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Gold and kingfisher feather headdress ornament, qing dynasty, 5.1 cm wide.

Headdress fragment

Fragment of Headdress

Qing DynastyGold, feathers, pearls

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Gold and kingfisher feather headdress ornament, qing dynasty, 5.7 cm wide.

Headdress fragment

Fragment of Headdress

Qing DynastyGold, feathers, pearls

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Gold and kingfisher feather headdress ornament, qing dynasty, 7.5 cm wide.

Headdress fragment

Fragment of Headdress

Qing DynastyGold, feathers, pearls

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Jade (nephrite) and gold comb, qin and han dynasties, 5.1 cm high.

Shu (comb)

Comb

Qin and Han DynastiesJade (nephrite) and gold

The Metropolitan Museum of Art