Fingernail guards, called talons, are closely connected to the Chinese noble class habit of keeping long fingernails. The oldest golden talons date to the Han Dynasty, however many of those in our collection are from Qing Dynasty. In Chinese ancient agricultural society, women from the upper class were not encouraged to work or go outside, unlike those from working-class or peasant families, so they decided to keep long white fingernails to show their noble status.

This qing dynasty antique nail guard is handcrafted in silver. This is a large size guard measuring about 3" in length with a floral motif.