The decoration on this small silver hairpin in bent form puzzles us. What kind of flowers are depicted here? Are they Apricot blossoms (xinghua) symbolizing ‘Passing exams’ (jidihua)? We really don’t know. The hairpin is marked Yu Sheng (鈺聲) who may have been the silversmith or the retailer and it dates from the late Qing (1644 – 1912) to the early Republic period (1912 – 1947). Height 7 cm. Width 2.8 cm. Depth 0.9 cm.