A silver, hand made, three piece cocktail shaker embellished with a number of Chinese dragons running over the body chasing the flaming pearl. This is one of the most spectacular cocktail shakers made, and of this genre of silver, it has no rival. The entire piece is made in a thick gauge of silver. The background of the cocktail shaker is all hand engraved with scenes of bamboo trees adding enough detail without distracting from the majesty of the dragons racing around the cocktail shaker. This piece was made by one of the most important silversmiths in China in the 19th and 20th Century;Tu Mao Xing [Tu Mao Hsing]. Xingwas a master Chinese silversmith who operated from Jiǔjiāng [Kiukang] between 1880-1930, in fact he is considered to be one of the first silversmiths to make Chinese Export Silver from that city. He gained the monikerof the "Master of Dragon Making", due to the superb quality and execution he employed to bring these mysterious creatures to life on his works. An expert on the field of Chinese silver, Mr. A von Ferscht, believes that Xing was also a component maker of dragons for other workshops, as was common in the West where die making and other more "mass producing" was beginning to transform the business. The use of the five-clawed dragon is, among many things, the symbol of Imperial power and of the son of heaven. For the Chinese, the dragon is an auspicious creature symbolising strength, wisdom, good luck and power of the elements of wind and water. As such, Chinese people proudly claim they are descendants of the dragon. China’s feudal rulers did everything they possibly could to maintain this descendancy, surrounding themselves with dragon-related ornamentation, ruling from a dragon throne and even waging war under a dragon flag. The emperor’s robes “龙袍” [lóngpáo] were embroidered with curling dragons. While Western dragons are firmly rooted to the earth, Chinese dragons are indisputably rulers of the sky. This piece, being a cocktail shaker, beautifully ties in the effect that the West was having on Chinese culture during the "Jazz Age". This is very much a Western piece, but decorated in such a way that all the beauty, tradition and heritage of Chinese culture is pinned to it. As China benefitted from a domestic boom which saw a number of wealthy citizens embark on trips to Paris, London, New York and other booming cities, the desire to bring the finer trappings found abroad to China also helped spur a growth in consumption domestically, not just for export. This very rare, high quality cocktail shaker by one of China's greatest silversmiths would make for a wonderful addition to any home or collection. Made in Jiǔjiāng, China, circa 1920.