Title
Mourning kerosang
Year/Period
Late 19th - early 20th century
Region
Singapore
Object Type
Material
Dimension
Object size: 37.0 x 3.5 cm
Accession No.
2023-00560
Collection of
Credit Line
Gift of Rapheal Koh
Kerosangs were worn by women of indigenous, foreign, and mixed-race communities in Island Southeast Asia to secure the front of a blouse. Mourning (tua ha) in a Chinese Peranakan family was rooted in the Confucian tradition of filial piety. Depending on the family, a period of mourning could last from a few months to around three years, and the most visible expression of this was through dress. Women set aside their gold and diamond jewellery and wore more sombre ones made of silver and pearls.
