A pair of silver curtain hooks made in the early 19th-early/mid 20th century, specially designed for use on the four-poster wooden beds to hold back mosquito-netting or embroidered bed curtains.The curtains painstakingly hand-stitched from striking silk often came as part of a trousseau for brides barely in their mid teens.

The Baba Nyonya in Malay is also known as the Straits-born Chinese. They were merchants trading in South East Asia from the 14th century onwards.They depended on the Monsoons to ship them back and forth to China. The round trip took about nine months and involved a stop over for about six months. Some merchants married local women, adopting the local culture, eating habits and spoke their language. Over the course of time they developed a unique culture of their own which combined a blend of Ming dynasty Chinese customs with the Malay culture.

These hooks are among the most iconic and sought-after items of Peranakan silver.They were both functional (to gather and hold back the heavy mosquito netting or bed curtains) and highly decorative, symbolizing beauty, prosperity, and refinement in the Nyonya bedroom.

They are entirely hand crafted with traditional chasing, repoussé, and engraving techniques characteristics of late 19th to early/mid-20th century Peranakan Chinese silversmiths in Penang, Malacca or Singapore.

These pair of flower bouquet hooks are designed for holding back silk curtains or mosquito-netting use on four-poster Nyonya bed. A gracefully curving silver stem extends downward from the flower, with one or two small engraved leaves along the stem, terminating in the long, elegant hook itself. Hand crafted by Chinese Peranakan silversmiths in Malaya or Indonesia in the 19th to early/mid 20th century.

A pair of exquisite Peranakan silver curtain hooks, each one's an ornate bouquet, about palm-sized, with intricate borders like swirling vines, hallmarks of that lush Malay-Chinese fusion. They hang from silk cords or chains designed to elegantly hold back heavy embroidered brocade curtains. These timeless cultural treasures are entirely handcrafted with traditional chasing and engraving techniques characteristic of late19th to early/mid-20th century Peranakan Chinese of Malaya and Indonesia.

A pair of silver curtain holdbacks shaped like morning glory or trumpet flowers.

The floral bloom forms the main decorative part that gets mounted on the bed post and the long curved hook at the bottom is what you wrap the curtain to hold it back. They are entirely handcrafted with traditional chasing and engraving techniques characteristic of late 19th to early/mid 20th century Peranakan Chinese of Malaya and Indonesia.

A lotus flower design with a phoenix in the medallion is symbolic of purity and power.This open work silver bed ornament decorates the bed of the newly weds and for storing fragrant flower petals.

note: 4 cm by 1 cm strip of plain silver is missing on the main piece. It is not visible.

A story told in simple silver; four poster bed tie-back hooks whispering stories from the golden days, rich in cultural significance and elegance. They echo the glory of the Peranakan pride.

A pair of dragon motif silver hooks with incised Daoist and the eight treasures emblems. The hooks came from the bottom part of an elaborate tie-back piece.

The hooks feature a highly auspicious motif of confronting Dragon-fish, forming a half circle, one with a bird-like head (phoenix influence) and the other more serpentine, symbolizing harmony, the union of male (dragon) and female (phoenix), eternal love, fertility, and prosperity. These were specially used on elaborate Peranakans wedding beds (Katil pegantin) to hold up embroidered mosquito nets or silk canopy curtains in the bridal chamber. The small ornate bells at the top would have had chains or cords to suspend the netting.

Peranakan wedding beds were the most lavishly decorated pieces of furniture in the Baba-Nyonya home, covered in gold leaf, mother of pearl inlay and symbolic carvings. Accessories like these silver hooks were commissioned from Chinese silversmiths but blended Straits Chinese tastes- intricate repoussé/chased work, mythical hybrid creatures and strong auspicious symbolism for many sons and a harmonious marriage.

A pair of finely incised, chased and open work four poster bed ornaments used for decorating the bed of the newly weds. The top dome shape piece is decorated with floral scrolls and lotus petals. The lower piece has a "Ba Gua" in Chinese Feng Shui is a motif for warding off negative energies and is surrounded by the 8 auspicious symbols done in the open work. Jasmine and other fragrant flowers are kept in this box.

The pair on the top is finely repoussé and decorated with some of the eight treasures together with some emblems of the Taoist eight immortals. The medallion depicts a "Chi Lin" an auspicious mythical creature.The other three pairs are decorated with floral scrolls. They are stitched onto the ends of the bolster and are part of the decoration for the bridal bed.