Page 209 - Chinese SIlver By Adrien Von Ferscht

The lady’s evening bag is further enriched by
the use of yellow silk lining which shows
through the silver mesh. Silver ‘linkwork’ is an
art in itself and was traditionally practiced by
artisans of nomadic tribes in the Middle and
Near East.

The difficult question to ask here is for whom
was the bag made? While silver mesh bags
were used by Victorian ladies in Western
society, they were equally popular among
Peranakan women of Chinese origin in the
Straits’ territories. This could be a Victorian
handbag or it could be a ‘nonya’ purse.

Certainly in Singapore there would have been
Chinese silversmiths practised in the art of
silver link-work . A single bag would have in the
region of at least 5000 links, all formed by hand.