A showcase of Qing Dynasty jewelry!

Qing Dynasty empresses and concubines had to follow strict rules when wearing jewelry. In March, when they changed to summer hats, women would change to jade hairpins. In August, when they changed to winter hats, women would change to gold hairpins. It was popular to wear three pendants on one earlobe, a custom known as "one ear, three pendants." The trend of embedding gems in gold and silver jewelry began in the Yuan Dynasty, and gold-inlaid jade and gold-inlaid gems were popular in the Ming Dynasty. In the Qing Dynasty, jewelry took center stage, and threading beads and dotting kingfisher feathers were important features of Qing Dynasty gold and silver jewelry. The distinctive flat hairpins (bianfang) of the Qing Dynasty were usually worn horizontally across the bun, with a spindle or scroll shape, mostly made of gold and silver. The Qing Dynasty favored using coral rice beads or gold and silver to create grass and insect shapes, as well as jade lotus hairpins, also known as "hugging needle nails," which were made from exquisite materials. In addition to flat hairpins for Manchu hairstyles and flat hairpins for buns, many of the jewelry used in Manchu and Han makeup were the same. Qing Dynasty ear-picking hairpins were relatively long, commonly known as "one zhang green." Ear-picking hairpins or hairpin feet were made into two or three strands to form a hairpin. The Qing Dynasty saw the popularity of various hairstyles, such as "you" character head, small double handle, double handle head, frame head, flat bun, round bun, Suzhou cloud, and ruyi. In the late Qing Dynasty, braids and large wings were favored, with flat hairpins used to tie fake hair and real hair together. Manchu women usually wore Manchu hairstyles, and wore ceremonial clothing and diadems for festive occasions. Phoenix diadems with nine pieces were only suitable for brides, while others used full diadems with seven pieces, and widows and older women used half diadems with five pieces.