Title
Wedding purse with deer and bird motifs
Year/Period
Late 19th-early 20th centuries
Region
Straits Settlements
Object Type
Technique
Dimension
Object size: H10.2 x W10 x D1 cm
Accession No.
2005-01309
Collection of
This rare beaded purse (‘oh pao’) was made for ceremonial use during the traditional Peranakan wedding. The glass beads used, such as the ones on this piece, are miniscule, some as small as 0.5 mm in diameter. These required very fine needles which would have been easily bent or broken. It would therefore have taken a needle-worker of exceptional skill and eyesight to complete these purses. Items for the wedding trousseau such as these were typically made by the bride-to-be (and in some cases, her relatives) ahead of the event.
