Mulan--clear agate and red stone hair pin set

Inspired by Mulan the Chinese female warrior story (not the Disney version).

Mulan, in the original story (which was in the form of a long poem), was born
to a military family, where her family has the duty to provide an adult male to
fight for the country when needed. However when the call comes, her father was
too old and her brother (yes she had a younger brother) was very young. So she
thought all night and decided to dress up as a boy and join the army for the
family.

She left as a soldier, managed to hide her gender for 12 years during
countless battles and came back as a general.

However, when peace finally came and she was allowed to retire, her frist
react was to go back home, where her parents kept her room untouched for all
those years. She opened the windows, sat on the bed, and, yes, put on make up.
Then she went out to visit her army colleagues as her true self, not the
general, not the warrior, but Mulan the country girl.

After all these years fighting, finally she can be herself.

I made these hair pins one using white agate and 10,000 year red gum, the
other with red-pink stone (possibly jasper) and gidgee. Cream white and black,
red and brown, contrast like Mulan's mission and her true identity. Imagine she
wears these pins in her hair when she fights for her country, her home, her
life and her real dreams.

about 10,000 year red gum:
It doesn't mean the tree lived for 10,000 years, oh no. Rather , it means the
tree actually died that long ago, and was buried underground with its friends.
When people dig them out in search of coal, well, they were supposed to become
coal and they did not. They were not fossilized either. For some reason, they
stayed in timber form, like being trapped in time. Fascinating, isn't it?

10,000 year red gum is a rare and non-renewable material. The timber I had was
cut-off from a tool maker who uses them for inlay, and those pieces were too
small for anything. I just can't bare the thought that those time-made gem-like
pieces were going into waste, so now here it is, a beautiful hair piece.

only one set available.

Please note items in the photo other than the hair pins are for display only
and not included in the sale.