Silver chopsticks and spoons: why silver at the table
Silver was used at the table for status, durability and because it adds no taste to food. Its reputation for detecting poison…
Journal
Why does silver turn your skin green or black?
Green skin is copper reacting with sweat, not silver. Black marks are tarnish rubbing off. Neither means the jewellery is fake, and…
What is cloisonné silver?
Cloisonné is enamel held inside cells made of fine metal wire, fired until the glass fuses. On silver the technique has its…
A guide to the symbols on Chinese silver jewellery
Almost nothing on Chinese silver is decoration alone. Most motifs work through puns — an object whose name sounds like a word…
What does S999 mean on silver jewellery?
S999 means 99.9% pure silver — fine silver, stamped 足银999 in Chinese. It is purer, whiter and gentler on skin than sterling,…
What do Miao embroidery patterns mean?
The Miao had no widely used written script, and their embroidery came to carry what writing would otherwise have held — origin…
What is Su embroidery?
Su embroidery is the silk embroidery of Suzhou, worked with threads split down to a fraction of a single strand — fine…
What is Miao silver jewellery?
Miao silver is the festival silverwork of south-west China — headdresses, neck rings and collars that served at once as a family’s…
Is lacquerware food safe?
Fully cured lacquer is food safe and has been used for bowls and cups for thousands of years. The urushiol that irritates…
What is Chinese lacquerware?
Chinese lacquerware is built from many thin coats of sap tapped from the lacquer tree, each one cured before the next goes…