late Qing dynasty, comprising: two silver hair ornaments, test 900 or better, floral and foliate decoration, stamped character marks verso, 5-3/4 x 2-1/8 in. and 8-3/8 x 2-1/4 in.; gold plated hair ornament with engraved dragon decoration, top with inset pearls, red, and green stones, stamped character mark verso, 3-1/2 in.

Note: Hairpins are an important symbol in Chinese culture, and are associated with many Chinese cultural traditions and customs. They were also used as everyday hair ornaments in ancient China; all Chinese women would wear a hairpin, regardless of their social rank. The materials, elaborateness of the hairpin's ornaments, and the design used to make the hairpins were markers of the wearer's social status. Hairpins could be made out of various materials, such as jade, gold, silver, ivory, bronze, bamboo, carved wood, tortoiseshell and bone, among others (wiki).

These examples come from a larger collection of period hair ornaments which are increasingly difficult to find.

scattered scratches, discoloration, and tarnish; gold plated piece missing some inset pearls/stones