Luxurious jadeite and stunning glass: let’s appreciate the beauty of Qing Dynasty bracelets

Speaking of bracelets in the past, there were gold, silver, jade and gemstone bracelets. Friends have more or less seen these bracelets, but if I say that there were also glass bracelets in ancient times, I wonder if friends have seen them. Today I have sorted out some jade bracelets and glass bracelets from the Qing Dynasty, so that we can appreciate the beauty of Qing Dynasty bracelets with our friends.

If you haven’t seen this pair of bracelets in person, I wonder what impression your friends have of glass bracelets. Before I saw these bracelets, I thought glass bracelets would look cheap or nothing special. After seeing this pair of bracelets, I have to admit that the craftsmanship of our ancestors was excellent. Is this still glass? I really didn't expect that glass could be made like this and that a bracelet could look like this. As clear as the fresh rain in the empty mountains, as crystal as the tender buds on the branches in spring facing the sunshine. The more you look at it, the more amazing it is. The more you look at it, the more it looks like two elves that have fallen into the mortal world, clean and transparent, reaching straight into people's hearts.

There is also this pair of bracelets, which are red glass longevity bracelets with a white background from the Qing Dynasty and are now kept in the Palace Museum. They are all white, with red longevity patterns on the translucent glass. There are six short-lived characters and six long-lived characters, arranged at intervals. It is very clean and refreshing. Once again, I am impressed by the aesthetic taste of our predecessors. It is much more elegant than many brand bracelets nowadays. I wonder what kind of beauty at that time was worthy of such a pair of unique bracelets. Friends also had some interesting comments about these bracelets, but I won’t tell you about them here. Let’s take a look at another pair of bracelets first.

This pair of bracelets is from the same family as the ones above. They are green glass longevity bracelets with a white background from the Qing Dynasty and are also kept in the Palace Museum. We can see that this pair of bracelets is also made of two-color material, with six short-life characters and six long-life characters. The red is pleasing, the green is elegant. Friends, you didn’t expect that our predecessors would also come up with such a color series. Do you think that it is not inferior to the popular series of those luxury brands even now?

After seeing these two pairs of bracelets, some friends were immediately reminded of the small circles of transparent tape they used in their childhood, which happened to be red and green in color. It turns out that I was obsessed with the beauty of the two pairs of bracelets. After my friend said that, the image of the transparent tape back then kept appearing in my mind. I couldn't help but admire my friends' imagination. It's really amazing and they dare to think big.

After looking at the glass bracelet, let’s take a look at the jade bracelet. According to the data, jade bracelets became popular in the mid-Qing Dynasty and reached their peak in the late period. The shape of bracelets at that time was mainly round, but there were also square or oval shapes. The pair in the picture are relatively square, and as we know, the craftsmanship at that time was purely handmade, so if we look at the picture carefully, we will find that there are subtle differences in the symmetry and uniformity of the bracelets.

However, on the other hand, this also highlights the natural beauty of jade. Their green color is lustrous and the color depth is not very uniform, but that does not prevent people from appreciating its amazing beauty. Even now, such jade bracelets are still rare, and such jade was considered "high-quality jade" at that time.

And at that time, the outside of the jade bracelet would be carved with some patterns such as the bundle-like patterns of tied bundles. I guess that in addition to the meaning, it may also be somewhat similar to the current crack avoidance carvings, and such carvings are done to deal with some defects. As shown in the picture, it is a knot-like pattern similar to the bags carried by the actors in costume dramas. Friends, what do you think the meaning of this is? I think it may mean reunion.

In addition to the lines, a closer look reveals that the surface of the bracelet is not very smooth. This is also a characteristic of the pure handmade products at that time. Because it was made purely by hand, the surface would not be polished as smooth as our current jade bracelets. The surface of the jade bracelets at that time had some small bumps and potholes, just like those bluestone roads that have existed for hundreds of years, polished to a shine by the years but with traces that time cannot erase, rushing with a contradictory and harmonious taste, called the age.

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