This ornament, sewn using both embroidery and beading techniques, would have been hung on a Peranakan wedding bed. It is patterned with fertility and auspicious symbols such as flowers in full bloom and birds, reflecting the wish to have many heirs to the family name. Fertility symbols such as butterflies, rodents and scrolling foliage, were found in abundance amongst the wedding ornaments for the home. Wedding chamber ornaments were usually commissioned in pairs, as the Peranakans consider the number ‘two’ as auspicious.
