Silver neck chain and attachment hooks which are decorated with Plum blossoms and a Magpie. This is a popular motif in China and represents the saying 'May your joy reach as high as your eyebrows (Xishang meishao)'. Magpies (xique) are birds of Joy and the Plum (mei) is a pun for 'eyebrows' while the top of the plum tree (mei shao) is a pun for 'top of one's eyebrows'. The links of the chain are also shaped as Plum blossoms. The five petals of a Plum blossom symbolize the Five Blessings, Old age, Health, Wealth, Love of Virtue and a Peaceful death. The hooks at the ends of the chain went into buttonholes at the top of an apron. Aprons started to be popular during the Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644) and they remained fashionable in the centuries thereafter. The silver button-hooks are hallmarked with the name Tong Qing Hua (同慶華) who may have been the silversmith who made this chain. It is of a very good quality and dates from the end of the Qing (1644 – 1912) to the early Republic period (1912 – 1947). Chain: Length 55 cm. Width 1.3 cm. Depth 0.4 cm. Hooks: Diameter 2.3 cm. Depth 0.5 cm. Total weight 60 grams.