AN ENAMELED SILVER NEEDLE HOLDER, 17th CENTURYChina, early Qing Dynasty (1644-1912). Cast as a female figure wearing decorated long robes and a lobed hat, both enameled in green and blue, having movable earrings and bracelets, and holding a thread in both hands, the face highly detailed with a friendly expression. The top of the hat is pierced allowing a chain to pass through and connect to the inner needle compartment, which opens from the base and supports a hanging glass bead. The compartment shows a ´Yuan Qin´ studio mark. Condition: Good condition with traces of use and wear as well as chips to the enamels. Provenance: The collection of The Zelnik István Southeast Asian Gold Museum. Institutional art collection in Belgium, acquired from the above. Dr. István Zelnik, President of the Hungarian South and Southeast Asian Research Institute, is a former high-ranking Hungarian diplomat who spent several decades in Southeast Asia, building the largest known private collection of Asian art in Europe. Weight: 24.3 g Dimensions: Height 6 cm (the figure), 15 cm (total)