x Dia: 3.5
These finely fashioned gilt silver ‘bakul bunga’ (literally ‘flower basket’) were part of the ensemble of beaded decorations, curtain hooks and auspicious symbols which adrorned the traditional Peranakan wedding bed. This pair of bakul bunga was commissioned from the notable Shanghainese silversmiths Jing Fu (景福). The pieces were fashioned from fine repoussé silver sheet and decorated with intricate wire filigree phoenixes and flowers. The body of each piece can be opened, so a small bundle of aromatic herbs and flowers could be placed inside. The sweet aroma of flowers was generally thought to have a purifying effect on the immediate environment. The wedding bed was vitally important because it was intended to be a place of conception for the next generation of the family. Hence it had to be protected from malevolent forces and this pair of bakul bunga added a protective force around the wedding bed.
