Title
Mourning dragonfly kerosang
Year/Period
20th century
Region
Penang
Object Type
Material
Technique
Dimension
Object size: Pls refer to individual parts for measurements
Accession No.
2023-00562
Collection of
Credit Line
Gift of Rapheal Koh
Kerosang 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.
